“Very thankful for everything they did for us. Always responsive, reassured us every step of the way and obtained a great result.”
Miguel Orellana
✦ Board-Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation Law — State Bar of California ✦
Your employer cannot punish you for getting hurt. If they did, we’ll make them pay.
By Eman Yazdchi, Esq. · Certified Specialist in Workers' Compensation Law
You filed a workers' compensation claim because you were injured on the job. Then your employer fired you. Or cut your hours. Or demoted you. Or suddenly "eliminated" your position. Or made your working conditions so intolerable that you had no choice but to quit. This is workers' comp retaliation, and it is one of the most common — and most damaging — illegal employer practices in Los Angeles.
California Labor Code Section 132a makes it a misdemeanor for any employer to discriminate against a worker for filing or intending to file a workers' comp claim. The law provides for reinstatement, back pay, a penalty increase of up to $10,000 to your disability award, and reimbursement of costs and attorney fees. Despite these protections, retaliation happens constantly in Los Angeles workplaces.
Attorney Eman Yazdchi of Yazdchi Law P.C. is a board-certified workers' compensation specialist who pursues LC Section 132a retaliation claims alongside underlying injury cases. Board certification means Eman has the demonstrated expertise to handle both the workers' comp claim and the retaliation claim simultaneously, maximizing your total recovery.
Retaliation is not always as obvious as a termination letter the day after you file a claim. Los Angeles employers — particularly in industries where workers are vulnerable — use subtler methods:
The most blatant form. You file a claim, and within days or weeks, you are fired. The employer may offer a pretext — "restructuring," "performance issues," "end of project" — but the timing reveals the true motive.
Instead of firing you outright, your employer cuts your shifts, reduces your hours, or moves you to a lower-paying position. The goal is the same: punish you financially for asserting your rights.
Your supervisor gives you the worst assignments, publicly berates you, excludes you from meetings, or makes disparaging comments about your injury or claim. The intent is to make your work life so miserable that you quit — which the employer hopes will look like a voluntary departure rather than retaliation.
When your doctor places you on work restrictions, your employer is supposed to offer modified or alternative work if reasonably available. Some employers deliberately refuse to accommodate restrictions, leaving you on unpaid leave, then argue you "abandoned" your job.
In certain Los Angeles industries — particularly entertainment and construction — employers communicate informally. A worker who files a claim may find that no one will hire them for future projects. While harder to prove, blacklisting is a form of retaliation that LC Section 132a was designed to address.
To prevail on a retaliation claim, you generally need to show:
The employer may attempt to prove a legitimate, non-retaliatory reason for the adverse action. Your attorney must then demonstrate that the stated reason is pretextual — a cover story for what was really retaliation.
LC Section 132a claims are heard at the WCAB alongside your underlying workers' comp case. This means your workers' comp attorney handles both — and that attorney needs to be skilled in both areas. Yazdchi Law P.C. provides:
Injured at work in Los Angeles? Call (661) 273-1780
Tap to call →Many Los Angeles workers tolerate retaliation because they are afraid of making things worse. But silence only emboldens employers. LC Section 132a exists specifically to protect you, and Yazdchi Law P.C. is prepared to enforce it.
If you have been fired, demoted, had your hours cut, or experienced any form of punishment after filing a workers' comp claim in Los Angeles, contact Yazdchi Law for a free consultation. Attorney Eman Yazdchi will evaluate your retaliation claim and fight to hold your employer accountable.
Ready to discuss your case? Schedule a free consultation.
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