Marital status discrimination in California happens when you are discriminated against in hiring or housing due to your legal marital status, including being single, married, separated, or divorced. Such discrimination also involves negative behaviors stemming from assumptions about your marital status or the identity of your spouse. California acknowledges marital status as a category of protection, which is highly safeguarded in the workplace and at home, particularly when a person undergoes a divorce. These protections are provided by the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and Government Code Section 12940.
In contrast to federal law, which offers minimal protection in this field, California has established broader standards to prevent unjust treatment based on marital status. The laws are meant to ensure that people are not judged or assumed when making significant life decisions. Read along to understand what California law means by marital status discrimination, where it is applied, and how these safeguards protect your rights.
Defining Marital Status Per Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA)
During a divorce, your legal status may change, but your right to equal treatment remains the same. Marital status is not limited to being married or unmarried under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act.
Instead, California law takes this category quite broadly, encompassing all possible states of marriage and non-marriage. You are protected whether you are married now, have never been married, are divorced, or are widowed.
Moreover, the protection also applies to those who are separated or whose marriage has been annulled. This is a crucial point for you when you are in the midst of a high-stakes divorce, because it prevents third parties from making decisions about your life based on your ongoing legal action.
The legal definition of the same in the California Government Code Section 12940 guarantees that you are not subject to discrimination regardless of whether you are a part of a conventional marriage or a registered domestic partnership.
The law acknowledges that your personal relationships should not determine your professional opportunities or your ability to rent or own a home. In California, the term "protected class" implies that marital status is given the same legal significance as race, religion, and gender. This protection extends to perceived status as well.
If an employer or a landlord treats you differently due to the wrong assumption that you are undergoing a messy divorce, or even because you are single, they are still breaking the law. It is all about the criminal intent of the decision-maker and not the technical correctness of your marital paperwork.
The California model is much more liberal than the federal one. Although the federal government offers certain protections to its own workers under the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978, the average worker in the private sector in most states does not have a federal right to be free of discrimination based on marital status.
But since you are a resident of California, you are subject to a jurisdiction that considers these personal life decisions to be private and unrelated to your merit. This means that when your marital status changes, the law helps protect you from losing your job or being denied housing simply because of that change.
Determining Marital Status Discrimination at the Workplace
At the workplace, you will most likely come across the implicit or explicit prejudices that are related to your marital status. Since California recognizes this as a protected group, you are entitled to be judged solely on your skills, experience, and performance. In this case, discrimination takes place when an employer makes an adverse decision regarding your employment based on the fact that you are a divorced or single individual.
This may be reflected in the process of hiring, in your employment in a firm, or even when you are being fired. You should be attentive to these patterns, particularly when you realize that your professional status is changing at the same time your divorce is announced or your marital lifestyle is changing.
Outlawed Employment Practices
Any negative employment practice based on your marital status is legally covered in your favor. A negative move does not necessarily mean being fired, but it encompasses a broad spectrum of actions that can either put a hold on your career or reduce your work environment.
As an example, an employer may unlawfully deny a promotion based on the assumption that a newly single parent lacks commitment, rather than on job performance. This is commonly known as assumption discrimination. The employer is not making the decision based on your performance but on a stereotype as to how a divorced individual or a single person spends their time.
Likewise, you cannot be demoted, paid less, or have your benefits denied due to your marital status. When an organization offers bonuses or family benefits but leaves you out because you are now divorced or single, that conduct may constitute unlawful marital status discrimination under California law. You are also entitled to a harassment-free workplace regardless of your marital status.
If you are repeatedly subjected to unwanted comments about your divorce, dating life, or marital status in a way that creates a hostile work environment, you may have grounds to take legal action. California law requires your employer to provide a professional environment in which your personal life is not an object of mockery or a consideration in your career path.
Unlawful Inquiries During the Hiring Process
As soon as you seek employment, you are under protection. California law is extremely particular regarding what an interviewer may and may not ask you. When you are being interviewed for a job, questions that seek to determine your marital status should not be asked.
As an example, an employer should not ask you about your maiden name, whether you are a Miss or a Mrs., or whether you have any intentions to be married or have a family soon. These questions are frequently used as proxies to assess how stable or available you are, which is a discriminatory way to evaluate a candidate.
Moreover, you are not supposed to be questioned about the employment of your spouse or their religious affiliations because this will indirectly inform your employer about your marital status and may result in bias. When someone questions you as to why you are moving or why your spouse is being transferred, you are being coerced into disclosing confidential information.
In California, you should concentrate on your capacity to do the job. If an employer relies on your responses to these forbidden questions to refuse you a job, they have contravened the Fair Employment and Housing Act. It is your right to maintain the privacy of your marital transitions in the recruitment process, and any effort by a recruiter to invade that privacy is a warning sign of possible discrimination.
California Housing Marital Status Protection
A home is your refuge, but when you are going through a divorce, trying to obtain or retain a house can be challenging. California law applies the same marital status protections in the housing context, preventing landlords or sellers from denying housing based solely on changes in your household structure.
No matter whether you need to rent an apartment, buy a home, or take out a mortgage, your divorce, separation, or single status cannot be held against you. This is a critical safeguard for you if you are leaving an ordinary marital residence and have to find a new house on your own or as a single parent.
It is illegal to deny you the right to rent due to your marital status by the landlords and property managers. You may find a landlord who favors stable married couples, since they believe such tenants are more responsible or financially stable. This preference is not legal in California.
The landlord has no right to provide you with different terms or conditions of your lease depending on whether you are married or single. As an example, they cannot demand a larger security deposit from you because you are single, nor can they restrict your use of some amenities that are offered to married tenants. Your income and credit score should determine your financial eligibility, not your marital status.
In addition to protections against the rental, you are also covered against discrimination in the terms and conditions of a sale or in the financial assistance provided to you to purchase a house. If a mortgage lender treats you differently because you are a woman going through a divorce or refuses to consider alimony or child support as qualifying income, that conduct may violate the law.
California is guaranteeing that when you restructure your life and your assets, you have an equal chance to compete in the housing market. Any effort to direct you, or not to direct you, to specific neighborhoods based on your marital status is illegal steering, which is strictly forbidden by law.
Limits and Exceptions to Marital Status Protections
Although California offers wide protection to your marital status, you need to know that there are limited, specific exceptions under which an employer is allowed to take into account the identity of your spouse. The exceptions are mainly in Government Code Section 12940(a)(3) and are commonly known as anti-nepotism or conflict-of-interest rules.
You should realize that these exceptions are limited to your relationship with a current spouse working at the same employer, and in general, they do not apply to you after you are divorced or even when you are single.
In California, an employer may control the working relationship of a married couple, provided that both work in the same department or facility. Nevertheless, the employer should justify this policy with valid business reasons, namely, supervision, safety, security, or morale.
As an example, a company has the right to ensure that one spouse does not directly supervise the other. This is allowed to avoid favoritism or the creation of a conflict of interest, which may demoralize other employees.
If you and your spouse work in the same company and one of you is in a position to audit, evaluate, or promote the other, the employer is legally allowed to transfer one of you to another department.
California courts, however, take these exceptions very narrowly. The employer cannot adopt a blanket policy of refusing to hire the spouses of current employees without an apparent business reason.
When the two spouses are employed in entirely different fields within a large company and do not interact professionally, the employer cannot give a reason to force a transfer or dismissal.
These spousal exceptions are not applicable once you have divorced. When an employer still treats you differently due to the identity of your former spouse, or even because they are still employed at the company, the employer may again be engaging in unlawful marital status discrimination. The law guarantees your right to work without the reputation or position of your former partner.
How to Enforce Your Rights Under California Law
If you feel that you have been targeted due to your marital status, then you should be aware of the steps to follow to defend your rights. California law is not merely giving you a right; it is giving you a particular mechanism through which that right is to be enforced.
The first place to look is the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH), which was previously called the California Civil Rights Department (CRD). This agency investigates claims of discrimination in employment and housing. The first thing is that you cannot just go to court and file a lawsuit; you have to exhaust your administrative remedies by submitting a formal complaint to the CRD.
You should be aware of the strict deadlines of these claims. In the case of employment-based marital status discrimination, you generally have three years after the date of the discriminatory act to submit your complaint to the CRD.
Failure to file a lawsuit within this window can result in losing the right to claim it permanently. After you file a complaint, the CRD will review it. They can provide a mediation service, which is an informal procedure in which you and your employer can make an effort to settle the matter without an official inquiry or a lawsuit. In the event of a mediation failure, the CRD may conduct a comprehensive investigation to determine whether there is probable cause to suspect discrimination.
If the CRD does not wish to take your case, or you want to do it on your own, you can request a Right-to-Sue notice. This document enables you to retain a private attorney and to initiate a civil lawsuit in a Superior Court in California. There are several types of relief that you can obtain in a successful marital status discrimination case.
Types of Marital Status Discrimination Compensation
In cases of marital status discrimination, California law provides various forms of compensation to cover financial and emotional damages to the employee. Knowledge of these remedies can help victims safeguard their rights and receive fair treatment at the workplace.
Repayment of Lost Wages (Back Pay)
Back pay compensates for lost wages resulting from discriminatory practices, including refusal to promote, failure to raise, or wrongful dismissal. This is to assure the employee that they will be financially compensated for the period during which they were victims of the employer's unlawful acts.
Future Losses (Front Pay)
Front pay can be awarded when it is no longer possible to return to the former position. Front pay is granted to cover the future earnings the employee would have earned had the discrimination not occurred and to safeguard their livelihood, even in cases where reinstatement is not feasible.
Emotional Distress Damages
Employees are also likely to receive emotional distress damages, which compensate for the psychological impacts of discrimination. This involves stress, anxiety, humiliation, or other emotional distress due to a hostile work environment or due to unfair treatment based on marital status.
Punitive Damages
Courts can award punitive damages in unusual circumstances where an employer's actions are malicious, fraudulent, or deliberately harmful. These damages are used to penalize the employer and to discourage the same in other organizations.
Why Pursuing Compensation Matters
Compensation is not only a way of relief but also a way of enforcing the principle that employees should be treated equally, whether they are married or not. It sends a powerful message that discrimination is not tolerated, promotes a culture of fairness at the workplace, and reinforces legal protections in California. By making employers responsible, you help safeguard marital status as a truly protected category under the law.
Find a Family Law Attorney Near Me
Marital status is a protected classification in California, which implies that you cannot be mistreated at the workplace or in housing opportunities due to being single, married, or divorced. California law ensures that personal life decisions do not influence your career and housing opportunities.
If you are discriminated against because of your marital status, you have legal rights, including the right to recover damages such as lost wages, emotional distress, and, in extreme situations, punitive damages. Understanding these safeguards will enable you to take the necessary steps to protect your livelihood.
At Los Angeles Divorce Lawyer, our divorce attorneys integrate the knowledge of family law and civil rights to guide you through workplace or housing discrimination in the workplace or housing. Contact us today at 310-695-5212 to schedule a consultation.
