California Employment Lawyers · Glendale, CA

Fired, Harassed, or Unpaid Wages? Stand Up for Your Rights.

If your employer broke California's workplace laws, Derderian Law helps you hold them accountable and recover what you're owed. Get a free, confidential consultation, and pay nothing unless we win.

Wrongful Termination Sexual Harassment Discrimination Retaliation & Whistleblower Unpaid Wages & Overtime

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Employees First, Not Employers No Fee Unless We Win 99% Client Satisfaction Free & Confidential Consultation

Areas We Handle

California Employment Law
What We Fight For

Whatever your employer did, there's likely a name for it under California law. These are the cases Derderian Law takes on for employees across Los Angeles.

Fired for an illegal reason, retaliation, discrimination, refusing to break the law, whistleblowing, or taking protected leave. "At-will" doesn't mean "for any reason."
Unwanted advances, sexual comments, quid-pro-quo demands, or a sexualized workplace. You have the right to work without being harassed.
Severe or pervasive mistreatment, slurs, threats, or intimidation tied to a protected trait that makes your workplace abusive to endure.
Being treated worse because of who you are.
RaceSexual orientationGenderAgeDisabilityReligionPregnancyNational origin
Fired, demoted, cut, or punished after you complained, reported harassment or discrimination, or exercised a workplace right. Retaliation is illegal in California.
Punished for reporting illegal, unsafe, or fraudulent conduct, internally or to a government agency. California law protects people who speak up.
Not being paid what the law requires.
Unpaid overtimeMissed meal breaksRest-break violationsOff-the-clock workUnpaid wages

Not sure what to call it? If something feels wrong about how you were treated at work, that's reason enough to ask.

Tell Us What Happened

California Law Is On Your Side

The protections most workers don't know they have

California doesn't leave employees to fend for themselves. Several powerful laws may apply to your situation at once, and often the employer is counting on you not knowing that.

  1. 1

    The Fair Employment & Housing Act (FEHA)

    Protects employees from discrimination, harassment, and retaliation based on protected traits, and applies to most California employers.

  2. 2

    The California Labor Code

    Guarantees overtime pay, meal and rest breaks, and full, on-time wages. Violations can entitle you to back pay plus penalties.

  3. 3

    "At-Will" Has Limits

    Yes, California is at-will, but your employer still cannot fire you for an illegal reason, such as discrimination, retaliation, or reporting misconduct.

  4. 4

    Whistleblower Protection (Labor Code § 1102.5)

    Shields employees who report what they reasonably believe is illegal activity from being punished for speaking up.

Do You Have a Case?

If any of these sound familiar, let's talk

Talk to us before you sign anything, cash a severance check, or assume nothing can be done.

  • Fired or demoted soon after you complained, reported, or requested leave
  • Unwanted sexual advances, comments, or touching at work
  • Treated worse because of your race, gender, orientation, age, or disability
  • Owed overtime, or denied legally required meal or rest breaks
  • Pressured to work off the clock, or not paid for all your hours
  • Punished for reporting something unsafe or illegal
  • A hostile or abusive environment that made it hard to work
  • Pressured to quit, or handed a severance you don't understand
See If You Have a Case

What You May Recover

Employees win real outcomes in California

Every case is different, but depending on what happened, a successful claim may include some or all of the following.

Lost Wages & Benefits

Back pay and future lost earnings when your job or income was taken from you.

Emotional Distress

Compensation for the anxiety, humiliation, and toll unlawful treatment takes on you.

Unpaid Wages & Penalties

Overtime, missed-break premiums, and waiting-time penalties owed under the Labor Code.

Punitive Damages

In cases of especially reckless or malicious employer conduct, additional damages may apply.

Job-Related Relief

Reinstatement, policy changes, or other remedies that hold your employer accountable.

No Upfront Cost to You

We take these cases on contingency. You owe no attorney's fees unless we recover for you; clients may still be responsible for case costs.

Why Derderian Law

A firm that cares about employees

We represent people who were wronged at work, and we treat your case like it matters, because it does.

Led by attorney Patil Derderian, based in Glendale and serving employees across Los Angeles.

Get My Free Consultation

Learn more about the firm

  • No Fee Unless We Win

    Contingency representation: your consultation is free, and you owe no attorney's fees unless we recover for you.

  • Personalized Attention

    You'll work directly with your attorney and get straight answers, not a case number in a mill.

  • Trial-Ready

    We prepare every case to win, and employers know we're ready to take it to court when needed.

  • Fast, Confidential Response

    Reach out and we'll get back to you quickly. Everything you share with us stays confidential.

Common Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

California is an "at-will" state, so an employer generally can end employment without giving a reason. But at-will has firm limits: your employer cannot fire you for an illegal reason, such as discrimination, harassment, retaliation for complaining, whistleblowing, or taking legally protected leave. If any of those were behind your termination, you may have a wrongful-termination claim.
Being fired because of a protected trait (race, sex, age, disability, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, pregnancy, and more), in retaliation for reporting harassment, discrimination, or illegal conduct, for refusing to break the law, or for exercising a workplace right (like taking family or medical leave). If your firing lines up with any of these, it's worth a free review.
Legally, it's more than a rude boss or a bad day. It generally means harassment based on a protected trait that is severe or pervasive enough to make your workplace abusive or intimidating, for example, repeated slurs, sexual comments, threats, or ongoing intimidation. If the conduct is tied to who you are and it's affecting your ability to work, let us take a look.
Yes. Retaliation is illegal in California. If your employer fires, demotes, cuts your hours, or otherwise punishes you for reporting harassment or discrimination, filing a complaint, or reporting illegal conduct, that retaliation can be a separate legal violation on top of the original problem. Document what happens and contact us right away.
We handle employment cases on a contingency-fee basis: your consultation is free, and you owe no attorney's fees unless we recover compensation for you. We'll explain exactly how fees and any case costs work, in writing, before you decide anything. There's no financial risk in finding out whether you have a case.
It depends on the type of claim, and some deadlines are much shorter than people expect. Because missing a deadline can mean losing your right to recover entirely, the safest move is to speak with a lawyer as soon as possible rather than waiting to see how things unfold. We can tell you quickly whether time is a factor in your situation.
Save anything that documents what happened, emails, texts, pay stubs, schedules, write-ups, names of witnesses, and a simple timeline of events. If you don't have much, don't worry; call us anyway. Part of our job is helping you identify and preserve the evidence that matters.

California claims have deadlines. Waiting can cost you your case

Employment claims are governed by strict time limits, some shorter than others, and evidence and witness memories fade fast. The sooner you talk to a lawyer, the more options you're likely to have. Finding out where you stand is free.

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