Legal Aid at Work

We helped an unhoused, formerly incarcerated client keep his living-wage job when his employer threatened to rescind his job offer because a background check had turned up old parole revocations. Within 48 hours, we helped the client negotiate with his employer and retain his union job, which ultimately landed him in stable housing.We fought to secure reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities who were impacted by COVID-19. For example, we obtained a favorable settlement on behalf of an office manager whose dedicated service of 15 years had abruptly ended because her boss fired her for requesting telework accommodations in the midst of the pandemic.On the 50th Anniversary of Title IX (which requires gender equity in public schools) we and co-counsel won an appeal in the 9th Circuit that allowed female athletes at Hawaiis largest public high school to proceed with a class action lawsuit alleging egregious sex discrimination against girls in the schools athletic program.Along with coalition partners, we successfully championed Legislation (SB 951) that will dramatically increase the amount of money that workers with low incomes can obtain from Californias Paid Family Leave and Disability Insurance programs. Before this legislation, people with low incomes (who are disproportionately people of color) often could not afford to use these vital programs because the wage replacement rate was simply too low.We helped immigrant workers statewide by securing a precedent-setting decision from the California Court of Appeal. It held that California law bars defense counsel from inquiring into immigrant plaintiffs work authorization except in the narrowest of circumstances and upon a strict showing of legal necessity.In partnership with Trabajadores Unidos Workers United (TUWU), we helped secure a decision from the California Labor Commissioner for $2.2 million in stolen wages for former employees of a Burger King franchise in San Francisco who were subjected to wage theft.We provided individualized legal advice and counsel to approximately 3,000 people in the past year, including through our 13 regular Workers' Rights Clinic sites (and 4 additional evening clinics to meet increased client demand) throughout California that we operate in close partnership with 8 law schools, 150 law students, 100 volunteer attorneys, and 11 community based organizations.