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Target Focus: Workers’ Compensation Retaliation, Unlawful Discharge & Civil Wrongful Termination
When an employee suffers an injury on the job in California, they possess a constitutionally protected right to seek necessary medical treatment and file a workers’ compensation claim. Regrettably, some employers retaliate against injured workers by terminating their employment, reducing their work hours, or demoting them under the guise of performative issues. Under California Labor Code § 132a, retaliating against an employee for seeking workers’ compensation benefits or reporting a job site injury is strictly illegal.
If you were discharged, demoted, or harassed after reporting a workplace injury, California law provides powerful statutory penalties and civil legal remedies to hold your employer fully accountable.
Strict Statutory Protections Under Labor Code § 132a
California Labor Code § 132a establishes an unequivocal prohibition: employers cannot discriminate against, discharge, or threaten to discharge any worker because they have filed-or intend to file-a workers’ compensation claim, or because they have testified in a workers’ compensation proceeding.
An employer found liable for violating Labor Code § 132a faces severe statutory consequences within the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) system:
- 50% Award Penalty: A mandatory 50% increase in the injured worker’s overall compensation award (up to the statutory maximum cap of $10,000).
- Mandatory Reinstatement: Legal reinstatement of the worker to their former position without loss of seniority.
- Full Back Pay & Benefits: Complete reimbursement for lost wages and employment benefits caused by the discriminatory action.
Pursuing Unlimited Civil Remedies Beyond Compensation Court
While Labor Code § 132a addresses statutory penalties within the workers’ compensation system, retaliatory discharge also serves as the foundation for a civil lawsuit in California Superior Court. Under California common law, firing an employee for exercising a statutory right constitutes Wrongful Termination in Violation of Public Policy (commonly known as a Tameny claim).
Unlike administrative workers’ compensation remedies, a civil lawsuit in Superior Court carries no statutory caps on financial recovery:
- Unlimited Lost Income: Recovery of full back pay, front pay, future earnings loss, and employment benefits.
- Emotional Distress & Pain and Suffering: Substantial compensation for mental anguish, anxiety, and professional embarrassment.
- Punitive Damages: Exemplary damages designed to punish bad-acting employers for malicious or fraudulent conduct.
Defeating Pretextual Employer Defenses with Trial Counsel
Employers rarely admit to firing an employee due to an injury. Instead, management often relies on false performance reviews, sudden disciplinary write-ups, or sham corporate lay-offs as pretexts for unlawful termination.
Do not allow an irresponsible employer to compromise your career or medical recovery. If you suffered retaliation or discharge following an on-the-job injury, obtain aggressive trial representation to pursue your remedies under both Labor Code § 132a and civil wrongful termination law.
Contact Leeran S. Barzilai, A Professional Law Corporation today:
- Phone: (619) 436-7544
- Email: receptionist@lbatlaw.com
- Website: lbatlaw.com
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