Were you sexually harassed at work in Long Beach?
Unwanted sexual comments, messages, touching, advances, or pressure involving your job may be unlawful. Retaliation after you objected or reported it may be unlawful too.
If your workplace rights were violated, you may be able to pursue compensation for lost pay or emotional harm, and hold your employer accountable.
Not sure whether it was "serious enough"? You can request a review even if you never reported it to HR or are still employed.
What this looks like in real life, and what the law calls it.
Sexual harassment is usually smaller, repeated, and easier to doubt than people expect. The legal test is whether unwelcome conduct tied to sex made your job hostile, it does not have to be physical or loud.
He says the comments are jokes. They're about my body, and they happen every shift.
The law calls it → sexual harassment (hostile work environment)
- My manager hinted my hours depend on how 'friendly' I am after work. The law calls it → quid pro quo sexual harassment
- The comments stopped being about work a long time ago. Now it's my body, my clothes, my dating life. The law calls it → hostile work environment based on sex
- After I turned him down, my good shifts disappeared and my reviews got worse. The law calls it → retaliation, illegal even if the original complaint isn't proven
- They didn't fire me. They just made every day bad enough that I'd quit. The law calls it → constructive discharge
- The night-shift lead says overtime at the terminal 'depends on getting along with me', and won't take no for an answer. The law calls it → quid pro quo sexual harassment
These cover unwelcome sexual advances or comments, quid pro quo (job tied to sexual conduct), hostile work environment based on sex, pregnancy and gender, sexual orientation and gender identity, retaliation for reporting, in any industry. If something here is familiar, you don't have to be sure before you ask.
Illustrative situations, not client accounts.
Harassed at a Long Beach workplace, the port, a hospital, a hotel? California's FEHA protects you at any employer size, even a one-person shop, and state-law remedies are not subject to the federal Title VII cap schedule, plus attorney's fees. You get three years to file a CRD claim. Our attorneys have secured millions for employees across California. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
What could taking action help you pursue?
Depending on the facts, legal action may help recover financial losses, address emotional harm, restore employment opportunities, or require workplace changes. Available remedies depend on the facts and applicable law; no outcome is guaranteed.
Recover what you lost
Lost pay, benefits, hours, and employment opportunities tied to the unlawful conduct.
Address the harm
Compensation for emotional distress may be available where the law provides for it.
Restore an opportunity
Some cases may involve reinstatement, promotion, corrected records, or another job-related remedy.
Create accountability
A resolution may include policy changes, training, or other corrective workplace action.
You do not need a perfect record, or even to know whether what happened was illegal, before asking what your options are.
Common concerns we hear from employees
I never reported it to HR.
You may still have legal options. Not reporting immediately does not automatically end your rights, although the specific facts can affect a claim.
I don't have screenshots or witnesses.
You do not need a complete evidence file before contacting us. We can help identify texts, emails, schedules, witnesses, and other evidence that may matter.
I still work there.
You can ask questions while still employed. Retaliating against a worker for opposing unlawful conduct or asserting protected rights may itself be unlawful.
It was a customer or client, not a coworker.
In some circumstances, an employer may be responsible for the conduct of supervisors, coworkers, customers, clients, or other third parties.
Craig J. Ackermann
Shareholder · Admitted in California
Craig Ackermann represents California employees in wage-and-hour class actions, sexual and racial harassment, discrimination, and retaliation matters. He is licensed in California, Washington, and Texas.
Read Craig's full bio →Real verdicts and recoveries in harassment and discrimination cases.
$23.5 million
150 women · Sexual harassment (multi-plaintiff)
$1 million
a group of women · Sexual harassment (multi-plaintiff)
$15 million
1 plaintiff · Gender pay & promotion discrimination, jury verdict (punitive damages under federal + Oregon law)
Jury verdict, subject to post-trial proceedings. Not a settlement or a collected recovery.
$1.3 million
19 Black construction workers · Racial harassment (hostile work environment)
Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
What happens after you reach out?
You don't need documents, a lawyer-ready story, or even certainty that what happened was illegal.
- 01
Talk with us
A short initial conversation about what happened and when.
- 02
We assess the record
We identify possible claims, deadlines and evidence that may matter.
- 03
If we take the case
We handle the filing strategy, negotiations and litigation.
Deadlines can depend on where and how you file
California and federal claims may follow different filing routes. These are general time limits, not sequential steps.
Generally, to file an employment-discrimination or harassment complaint with California's Civil Rights Department.
CRD, Employment ↗Often, to file an EEOC charge when the claim is also covered by state or local anti-discrimination law.
EEOC, How to File a Charge ↗Generally, to file a lawsuit after receiving a California CRD right-to-sue notice.
CRD, Obtain a Right to Sue ↗Other claims and exceptions may have different or shorter deadlines. Contact counsel promptly so the applicable dates can be reviewed.
Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA)
Cal. Gov. Code § 12940 et seq.
Primary source, Cal. Gov. Code § 12940 et seq. ↗Share what happened in about two minutes. The firm will review your submission and contact you about possible options and next steps. There is no cost or obligation to request a review.
Deadlines and filing issues for workers in Long Beach.
- California's 3-year CRD window is long, but the federal EEOC clock is only 300 days, if a Title VII claim matters to your case, that shorter deadline controls.
- Your CRD right-to-sue notice opens a strict one-year window to file in court, miss it and the claim is gone.
- Harassment is covered at ANY employer size (1+); discrimination claims need 5+ employees, two different thresholds inside the same case.
- For a temp or contract worker at the port, the clock runs from the last incident, not the end of your assignment, a staffing-agency badge does not strip FEHA's protection.
- California recognizes narrow tolling rules, equitable tolling and the continuing-violation doctrine among them, that can extend a deadline in specific situations; a lawyer can tell you whether any fit.
Where do you file a sexual harassment claim in Long Beach?
California Civil Rights Department
Filing is CENTRALIZED statewide: online via California Civil Rights System (CCRS), phone 800-884-1684, 711 relay, TTY 1-800-700-2320, email contact.center@calcivilrights.ca.gov, or mail to HQ. CRD HQ/mailing is 651 Bannon Street, Suite 200, Sacramento, CA 95811.
File online →EEOC Los Angeles District Office
There is no EEOC office in Long Beach, the city is in Los Angeles County and served by the Los Angeles District Office downtown. Most workers file online via the EEOC Public Portal.
Roybal Federal Building, 255 East Temple St., 4th FloorLos Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 785-3090 EEOC Public Portal →
Los Angeles County Superior Court
Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse275 Magnolia Avenue
Long Beach, CA 90802
The filing path, step by step
- 1Save everything early, texts, schedules, gate logs, and the names of witnesses. Port, warehouse, and hotel jobs turn over fast and records vanish.
- 2File with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) within 3 years, online through the CCRS portal, by phone (800-884-1684), or via the LA office at 320 W 4th St. Filing is centralized statewide, so no Long Beach visit is required.
- 3Or file with the EEOC within 300 days, the Los Angeles District Office at the Roybal Federal Building covers Long Beach, and most workers use the online Public Portal.
- 4Ask the CRD for a right-to-sue notice when you're ready to litigate, from that date you have 1 year to file suit.
- 5State FEHA claims are heard at the Governor George Deukmejian Courthouse, 275 Magnolia Avenue in Long Beach; federal Title VII claims go to the Central District of California.
Sexual-harassment information in other California cities
- FresnoWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- Los AngelesWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- Orange CountyWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- RiversideWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- SacramentoWorkplace sexual-harassment information
- San BernardinoWorkplace sexual-harassment information
Asked by Long Beach workers.
I'm a temp at a Long Beach warehouse and the harasser works for the staffing agency, who's responsible?
Both the staffing agency and the worksite employer can be liable under FEHA, which reaches joint employers. Harassment is covered at any size, and temp or contract status does not put you outside the law. Report it in writing to both and keep a copy.
A guest harassed me at a downtown Long Beach hotel, not a coworker, is my employer on the hook?
Potentially yes. FEHA holds employers liable for harassment by customers, guests, and vendors when they knew or should have known and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective action. Housekeeping and front-desk work is exactly where this comes up.
I work overnight on a hospital floor and a supervisor keeps cornering me, what can I do?
That's harassment your employer has to address. Isolated night-shift work is a recognized EEOC risk factor, and FEHA covers harassment by supervisors, coworkers, and third parties alike. Report it in writing, keep a copy, then talk to a lawyer about the CRD route.
My aerospace plant is almost all men and the shop-floor 'jokes' never stop, is that illegal?
It can be. When conduct based on sex or another protected trait is severe or pervasive enough to create a hostile environment, FEHA is violated regardless of how 'normal' it's treated. Being one of few women or minorities on a crew is a known risk pattern.
What's a California harassment case worth compared to Texas or federal court?
California caps nothing under FEHA, no ceiling on compensatory or punitive damages, plus attorney's fees for prevailing workers. Federal law and Texas cap recovery at $300,000 even against the largest employers, so the same facts can be worth far more here.
How long do I really have to file in Long Beach?
Three years to file with the CRD, then one year after your right-to-sue notice to file in court. The federal EEOC window is far shorter at 300 days. The safest move is to talk to a lawyer early so each claim lands on the right clock.