Useful Information & Links

Government Agencies

Department of Fair Employment and Housing

DFEH’s statutory mandate is to protect the people of California from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations pursuant to the California Fair Employment and Housing Act, Government Code section 12900, et seq., the Unruh Civil Rights Act, Civil Code section 51, et seq., and the Ralph Civil Rights Act, Civil Code section 51.7. DFEH has jurisdiction over both private and public entities operating within the State of California, including corporate entities, private sector contracts granted by the State of California, and all State departments and local governments. DFEH receives and investigates discrimination complaints in its fifteen district offices throughout the State.

United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) enforces the following laws: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin; the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA), which protects men and women who perform substantially equal work in the same establishment from sex-based wage discrimination; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), which protects individuals who are 40 years of age or older; Title I and Title V of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), which prohibit employment discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities in the private sector, and in state and local governments; Sections 501 and 505 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities who work in the federal government; and the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which, among other things, provides monetary damages in cases of intentional employment discrimination.

United States Commission on Civil Rights

The mission of the United States Commission on Civil Rights is to investigate complaints alleging that citizens are being deprived of their right to vote by reason of their race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin, or by reason of fraudulent practices; to study and collect information relating to discrimination or a denial of equal protection of the laws under the Constitution because of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin, or in the administration of justice; appraise federal laws and policies with respect to discrimination or denial of equal protection of the laws because of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin, or in the administration of justice; serve as a national clearinghouse for information in respect to discrimination or denial of equal protection of the laws because of race, color, religion, sex, age, disability, or national origin; submit reports, findings, and recommendations to the President and Congress; and to issue public service announcements to discourage discrimination or denial of equal protection of the laws.

United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division

The Division is the program institution within the federal government responsible for enforcing federal statutes prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, sex, handicap, religion, and national origin. The Division enforces the Civil Rights Acts of 1957, 1960, 1964, and 1968; the Voting Rights Act of 1965, as amended through 1992; the Equal Credit Opportunity Act; the Americans with Disabilities Act; the National Voter Registration Act; the Uniformed and Overseas Citizens Absentee Voting Act; the Voting Accessibility for the Elderly and Handicapped Act; and additional civil rights provisions contained in other laws and regulations. These laws prohibit discrimination in education, employment, credit, housing, public accommodations and facilities, voting, and certain federally funded and conducted programs. The Division enforces the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act of 1980, which authorizes the Attorney General to seek relief for persons confined in public institutions where conditions exist that deprive residents of their constitutional rights; the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act, the Police Misconduct Provision of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994; and Section 102 of the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 (IRCA), as amended, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of national origin and citizenship status as well as document abuse and retaliation under the Immigration and Nationality Act. In addition, the Division prosecutes actions under several criminal civil rights statutes which were designed to preserve personal liberties and safety. The Division is responsible for coordinating the civil rights enforcement efforts of federal agencies whose programs are covered by Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, and assists federal agencies in identifying and removing discriminatory provision in their policies and programs.

United States Department of Labor

The Department of Labor administers and enforces more than 180 federal laws. These mandates and the regulations that implement them cover many workplace activities for about 10 million employers and 125 million workers.

California Labor & Workforce Development Agency

The State of California Labor & Workforce Development Agency (LWDA) is an Executive Branch Agency, and the Secretary is a member of the Governor’s Cabinet. The Agency oversees seven major departments, boards and panels that serve California businesses and workers.

Organizations & Associations

Workplace Fairness

Workplace Fairness is a non-profit organization that provides information, education and assistance to individual workers and their advocates nationwide and promotes public policies that advance employee rights.

California Employment Lawyers Association

The California Employment Lawyers Association is a statewide organization of attorneys representing employees in termination, discrimination and other employment cases. CELA helps its members protect and expand the legal rights of working women and men through litigation, education and advocacy.

National Employment Lawyers Association

The National Employment Lawyers Association provides assistance and support to lawyers in protecting the rights of employees against the greater resources of their employers and the defense bar.

American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California

The mission of the ACLU is to preserve all of following protections and guarantees: First Amendment – the rights of free speech, free association, and assembly, freedom of the press and religious freedom, including the strict separation of church and state; Equal Protection – The right not to be discriminated against on the basis of certain classifications, such as race, sex, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, age, disability, etc.; Due Process– the right to be treated fairly, including fair procedures when facing accusations of criminal conduct or other serious accusations that can lead to results like loss of employment, exclusion from school, denial of housing, cut-off of certain benefits or various punitive measures taken by the government; Privacy – the right to a zone of personal privacy and autonomy; Groups and Individuals That Continue to Struggle For Civil Liberties – The extension of all the rights described above to those who are still fighting for the full protections of the Bill of Rights, including women, immigrants, the poor, people of color, trans gender people, members of minority religions, people with disabilities, lesbian, gay, or bisexual people, the homeless, prisoners, and children in the custody of the state. The ACLU accomplishes the above by lobbying, public education, and litigation.

National Lawyers Guild

The National Lawyers Guild is an association dedicated to the need for basic change in the structure of our political and economic system. NLG seeks to unite the lawyers, law students, legal workers and jailhouse lawyers of America in an organization that shall function as an effective political and social force in the service of the people, to the end that human rights shall be regarded as more sacred than property interests.

California State Bar

The Section furthers knowledge of its members in labor law and employment issues and provides a forum for California’s labor lawyers and non-lawyers with an interest in labor relations and employment issues.