Legal Question in Discrimination Law in California
Unjustified firing?
I was involved in a traffic accident, (my fault, no excuses) 4 days later i was fired, reason: broke a company safety policy (that was never explained). Previous to this, 2 other drivers broke a very clear safety policy, which was not to make unsafe U turns. They were suspended for about 3 weeks, returned to work. Difference between us: race. I'm Hispanic, they are white.
Its been 2 months since accident. Unable to get unemployment because I was fired.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Unjustified firing?
It is not clear why you cannot get unemployment. If the company says you were fired for misconduct, you should appeal the initial decision (you only have 20 days) and ask for a hearing. They will have to prove to an administrative law judge to did something seriously wrong. You should not be denied benefits simply because it was an accident.
Re: Unjustified firing?
You don't say whether the other drivers were involved in accidents. If they broke a driving rule, but were not involved in an accident, that might make a difference to your employer (and most other similarly-situated employers) as to whether to fire someone or merely suspend them. The accident no doubt affected your employer's insurance coverage, and probably cost it money. Breaking a company rule, by itself, however, probably did not have such consequences for the employer.
Under the circumstances, you would probably have a difficult time bringing a wrongful termination action.
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