Palo Alto Employment Lawyers Representing Firefighters

What is employment discrimination?

Fire departments discriminate when they adversely/negatively affect your employment based on your being a member of a protected class. At McNicholas & McNicholas, LLP, we’re respected for our ability to show that these two conditions apply.

• Adverse/negative employment conditions. These include employers who fail to:
  • Recruit or hire you
  • Train you
  • Give you opportunities for promotions
  • Promote you

Adverse employment conditions also include transferring you to an undesirable location, suspending you, or firing you.

• Protected class status. We assert the federal and California employment laws (each may protect different workers) from discrimination based on the following protected classes:
  • Race, color, or national origin
  • Gender, sexual orientation, or sexual preference
  • Age
  • Religion
  • Disability
  • Pregnancy/childbirth
  • Veteran status or military deployment
  • Weight

Employment discrimination also includes sexual harassment, racial harassment, denying a disabled worker reasonable accommodations to do their job, failing to adjust working conditions for pregnant women, and other types of employer misconduct.

According to the San Jose Spotlight, Santa Clara cities like Palo Alto are not taking the steps needed to hire and retain female firefighters. A 2022 grand jury report found that “women trying to become firefighters in cities throughout Santa Clara County face gender bias, a hostile work environment, a conscious lack of recruitment and other major obstacles.” The grand jury report “surveyed nearly 1,500 firefighters across four departments and 96 fire stations in the county. It found that only 4% of firefighters were women — far below the 17% target recommended by Women in Fire, an advocacy group.” In Palo Alto, only five out of 95 firefighters are female.