Short answer: workplace harassment is illegal in California when it is based on sex, gender, pregnancy, race, national origin, religion, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity or another protected characteristic, and it is either severe or pervasive. Sexual harassment includes unwelcome advances, requests for sexual favors, and sexual or gender-based comments and conduct, and “quid pro quo” harassment occurs when job benefits are tied to submitting to it. The employer is automatically liable for a supervisor’s harassment and liable for anyone else’s once it knows and fails to act. Abdi & Associates, Inc. helps individuals with workplace harassment claims throughout California. The consultation is free and confidential.
Two kinds of unlawful harassment
Quid pro quo
A supervisor or someone with authority conditions hiring, promotion, schedule, pay or continued employment on submitting to sexual advances or other sexual conduct, or punishes the employee for refusing. One incident is enough, and the employer is strictly liable.
Hostile work environment
Unwelcome conduct because of a protected characteristic that is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of employment: sexual comments and jokes, propositions, unwanted touching, sexual images and messages, comments about bodies or clothing, gender-based insults, or the same kinds of conduct directed at race, religion, disability, age or orientation. A single severe incident can be enough (Government Code section 12923). See our hostile work environment page for the full standard.
Who is protected
FEHA’s harassment protections (Government Code section 12940(j)) apply to employees, applicants, unpaid interns, volunteers and independent contractors, at every employer regardless of size. Harassment because of sex includes harassment based on pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and related conditions, and it need not be motivated by sexual desire; harassment of men, harassment by someone of the same sex, and harassment of transgender and nonbinary employees are all covered. Individual harassers can be sued personally.
What employers must do
Employers must take all reasonable steps to prevent harassment (section 12940(k)), including a written policy with a complaint procedure that does not require reporting to the harasser, distribution of the Civil Rights Department’s harassment information sheet, and harassment prevention training for all employees at employers with five or more employees (section 12950.1). When an employer learns of harassment it must investigate promptly and take corrective action reasonably calculated to end it. Failure to do so is a separate violation.
Retaliation for reporting harassment
Reporting harassment, refusing sexual advances, supporting a coworker’s complaint, and participating in an investigation are all protected. Any adverse action taken because of them, from termination to a schedule change, is unlawful retaliation (section 12940(h)) and is actionable even if the harassment claim itself does not succeed, as long as the complaint was made in good faith.
What you can recover
Lost wages and benefits, emotional distress damages, punitive damages where the employer or harasser acted with malice or oppression, reinstatement or front pay, and attorney fees and costs. FEHA damages are not capped. California law also prohibits an employer from requiring you to keep the facts of a harassment claim confidential as a condition of employment or settlement (Government Code section 12964.5; Code of Civil Procedure section 1001).
Deadlines
- A complaint with the California Civil Rights Department within three years of the last act (Government Code section 12960); a lawsuit within one year of the right-to-sue notice (section 12965).
- An EEOC charge within 300 days for federal Title VII claims (employers with 15 or more employees).
- Assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress claims against the harasser: two years (Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1).
What to do
- Say no clearly if it is safe, and report the conduct in writing under the employer’s policy. You are not required to report to the harasser.
- Keep a dated log with exact words and witnesses, and save messages and images, outside work systems.
- Do not secretly record conversations; California requires the consent of all parties (Penal Code section 632).
- Keep doing your job and document any change in treatment after your complaint.
- Get medical or mental health care if you need it; the records matter.
- Talk to a lawyer before resigning or signing anything, including a severance or an arbitration agreement.
How Abdi & Associates can help
Abdi & Associates, Inc. helps individuals with sexual harassment and workplace harassment claims throughout California. We evaluate the conduct, preserve the deadlines and agency filings, and, where a case calls for it, work with experienced employment trial counsel we trust while staying involved in your case. We work remotely, by phone, video and secure electronic signature. The consultation is free and confidential. Call (888) 772-2529 or, in Spanish, (323) 310-4264.
Frequently asked questions
I never complained to HR. Do I still have a case?
Yes. An internal complaint helps prove the employer knew, but it is not a legal prerequisite, and the employer is strictly liable for a supervisor’s harassment regardless.
The harasser is a customer, not an employee. Is the company responsible?
Yes, once it knows or should know of the conduct and fails to take immediate corrective action.
Can I be fired for reporting harassment?
Not legally. Termination after a good-faith complaint is retaliation and supports a separate claim.
Can I sue the harasser personally?
Yes. FEHA allows harassment claims against the individual as well as the employer.
See also employee retaliation, wrongful termination and the employment law overview.
Sources: Cal. Gov. Code §§ 12923, 12940(h), (j), (k), 12950, 12950.1, 12960, 12964.5, 12965; Cal. Code Civ. Proc. §§ 335.1, 1001; Cal. Penal Code § 632; 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2.
Reviewed by Shawn Abdi, Esq., Abdi & Associates, Inc. Last reviewed: September 4, 2026. Attorney advertising. This page is general information, not legal advice about your specific situation. Legal deadlines have exceptions; confirm the deadlines that apply to your case with a lawyer.