California National Origin Discrimination Laws: FEHA Protections (2026)

Quick Answer: California law prohibits employers from discriminating against workers because of their national origin, ethnicity, ancestry, or where they were born. Under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), this protection extends beyond simple country-of-origin bias to cover English-only workplace policies, accent discrimination, and in many cases immigration status. If you have experienced any of these forms of mistreatment at work, you may have grounds to file a complaint with California's Civil Rights Department (CRD) and pursue compensation.

National origin discrimination is one of the most frequently misunderstood categories of employment discrimination. Workers often assume it only applies to overt slurs or outright refusals to hire someone from a particular country. In reality, California law reaches far deeper. It covers subtle patterns of exclusion, seemingly neutral policies that disproportionately burden immigrant workers, and employer conduct rooted in assumptions about how someone speaks, where their family comes from, or whether they have legal status to work.

This guide covers the full scope of California's protections, what conduct is prohibited, how these rules compare to federal law, and what steps you can take if you believe your rights have been violated. For a broader overview of discrimination protections in the state, see California workplace discrimination laws.

What Is National Origin Discrimination Under California Law?

National origin discrimination occurs when an employer treats an employee or job applicant less favorably because of their national origin, ethnicity, or ancestry. Under California Government Code section 12940, which is the core prohibition within FEHA, covered employers cannot discriminate in any term, condition, or privilege of employment on this basis.

California's definition of "national origin" is intentionally broad. It includes:

• The country where a person was born
• The country where a person's parents or ancestors were born
• A person's ethnicity or ethnic background
• A person's ancestry or cultural heritage
• Physical, cultural, or linguistic characteristics associated with a particular national group

This means discrimination against someone because they are Mexican, Iranian, Filipino, Nigerian, Chinese, or from any other national or ethnic group is prohibited. It also means discrimination rooted in someone's ancestry counts, even if that person was born in the United States.

California's protections apply to employers with five or more employees (Gov. Code § 12926(d)). This is a critical distinction from Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, the federal counterpart, which only covers employers with 15 or more employees. If you work for a small business in California, you still have meaningful legal protection that federal law may not provide.

English-Only Workplace Policies

One of the most contested areas in national origin discrimination law involves English-only rules at work. California law addresses this directly.

Under California Government Code section 12951, an employer may only enforce an English-only rule if:

1. The rule applies to a specific and identifiable situation, not the entire workday
2. There is a legitimate business reason for the rule in that situation
3. The employer notified employees of the rule and the consequences for violating it

What does "legitimate business reason" mean in practice? Courts and the CRD have recognized narrow categories, such as requiring English during safety briefings where miscommunication could cause injury, or during customer-facing interactions where clients speak only English. A blanket rule prohibiting any non-English communication throughout the entire workday is generally not lawful.

For example, if your employer tells you that you cannot speak Spanish with a bilingual coworker during your lunch break, this likely violates FEHA. The break period is not a safety-critical situation, and there is no legitimate business need to control private conversations among employees on their own time.

If you are disciplined, demoted, or fired for violating an English-only rule that was never properly communicated to you, or that lacks a legitimate business justification, that action may constitute national origin discrimination.

Accent Discrimination in California Employment

Accent discrimination is a form of national origin discrimination. California law makes this explicit.

An employer cannot refuse to hire someone, pass them over for a promotion, or take any other adverse employment action solely because of how they speak. However, there is an important and narrow exception: an employer may consider an accent if it materially interferes with job performance.

The key word is "materially." An accent that is noticeable but understandable does not meet this threshold. An employer who claims a worker's accent interferes with communication must be able to demonstrate that the communication difficulty is genuine and significant, not merely a reflection of personal preference or discomfort with the worker's background.

Common examples of unlawful accent discrimination:

• Refusing to promote a qualified employee to a customer service role because of their accent when that accent does not prevent effective communication
• Reassigning an employee to lower-visibility tasks after a manager comments that customers "won't understand" the employee
• Mocking or imitating an employee's accent in the workplace
• Making hiring decisions based on regional accent when the accent does not impair the ability to do the job

If a manager has made comments about how you speak, where you are from, or how your name is "too hard to pronounce," document those statements. They may be direct evidence of discriminatory intent. This type of documentation is critical to building a strong claim, as discussed in our guide on California workplace discrimination laws.

Immigration Status and National Origin Discrimination

California provides additional protections related to immigration status that go beyond what federal law requires.

Under California Government Code section 12940 and related provisions of the Labor Code, employers generally cannot:

• Ask about an employee's immigration status for purposes unrelated to verifying work eligibility
• Use immigration status as a pretext to harass or intimidate workers who have filed complaints
• Threaten to report an employee to immigration authorities in response to the employee asserting their legal rights
• Discriminate in wages, hours, or working conditions based on immigration status

These protections are rooted in a clear policy rationale: if undocumented workers fear that asserting their rights will result in immigration enforcement action, they become easy targets for exploitation. California law recognizes this vulnerability and limits employers' ability to weaponize immigration status.

Important distinction: Employers are still required to verify work eligibility under federal immigration law (specifically the Immigration Reform and Control Act, or IRCA). Requesting the standard I-9 documentation is lawful. What is not lawful is demanding extra or different documentation from workers based on their national origin, or retaliating against workers who raise discrimination complaints by threatening immigration consequences.

California's Labor Code section 1019 makes it an unlawful employment practice to threaten, retaliate against, or coerce any person because they exercised a right under California labor law, including through threats related to immigration status.

What Behaviors Count as National Origin Discrimination?

National origin discrimination can take many forms. The law covers both disparate treatment (intentional discrimination) and disparate impact (neutral policies that disproportionately harm workers of a particular national origin).

Disparate Treatment Examples

Disparate treatment means your employer treated you differently because of your national origin. Examples include:

• A hiring manager screens out applicants with non-English-sounding names without reviewing their qualifications
• A supervisor assigns immigrant workers to the most physically demanding or lowest-paying roles regardless of their experience or job title
• An employee from a particular country is held to stricter attendance standards than coworkers from other backgrounds
• A worker is passed over for promotion and the hiring manager says they want someone who "fits in better with the team" — a comment that, in context, signals national origin bias
• An employee reports discrimination and is then subjected to increased scrutiny, schedule changes, or termination

Disparate Impact Examples

Disparate impact discrimination occurs when an employer applies a neutral policy that has a disproportionate negative effect on a particular national origin group, without a legitimate business justification. Examples include:

• A minimum English proficiency requirement that is more demanding than the job actually requires, which systematically screens out qualified workers from certain countries
• A dress code or grooming policy that prohibits cultural or religious attire commonly worn by workers of a specific national background
• A word-of-mouth hiring practice that draws almost exclusively from social networks that exclude immigrant communities

Harassment Based on National Origin

Harassment is a separate form of discrimination under FEHA. A hostile work environment based on national origin occurs when:

• Coworkers or supervisors make frequent offensive comments, slurs, or jokes about a person's national origin, ethnicity, or accent
• The conduct is severe or pervasive enough to alter the conditions of employment
• The employer knew or should have known about the conduct and failed to stop it

A single isolated comment may not rise to the level of illegal harassment, but a pattern of offensive conduct, or a single incident severe enough to fundamentally alter the workplace atmosphere, can. Management is held to a higher standard than coworkers, and a supervisor's harassing conduct is more likely to create employer liability.

How California Law Compares to Federal Law

California's FEHA provides significantly stronger protections than Title VII in several key respects.

For workers in California, this means state law is almost always the stronger avenue for pursuing a claim. Federal law remains available and in some circumstances can be pursued simultaneously, but FEHA's broader employer coverage, longer filing deadline, and uncapped damages make it the more powerful tool for most employees.

Employer Size and Coverage Requirements

As noted above, FEHA applies to employers with five or more employees. This covers the vast majority of California workplaces.

The count of "five employees" includes all full-time and part-time employees, and in some circumstances temporary and seasonal workers. If your employer argues they are too small to be covered, do not assume this is correct. The California CRD applies a functional analysis that may count affiliated entities or parent companies toward the minimum threshold.

FEHA also covers:

• Labor organizations and unions
• Employment agencies
• State and local government employers (regardless of size)
• Apprenticeship programs

Independent contractors do not have the same protections as employees under FEHA, but California's strict test for independent contractor status means many workers classified as independent contractors are actually employees as a matter of law.

How to File a National Origin Discrimination Complaint in California

If you believe you have experienced national origin discrimination, you must file an administrative complaint with the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) before you can file a lawsuit. This is called exhausting administrative remedies.

For a complete walkthrough of this process, see our detailed guide on how to file a CRD complaint in California.

Here is a summary of the key steps:

Step 1: File Within the Deadline

You have three years from the date of the last discriminatory act to file your complaint with the CRD (Government Code § 12960). This is longer than the federal deadline under Title VII, which ranges from 180 to 300 days. Do not confuse the state and federal deadlines. Missing the deadline will likely bar your claim entirely.

Step 2: Submit Your Complaint to the CRD

You can file your complaint:

• Online through the CRD's Civil Rights System (CRS) portal at dfeh.ca.gov
• By mail or in person at a CRD regional office
• By phone at 1-800-884-1684

Your complaint should include:

• Your name and contact information
• Your employer's name and contact information
• A description of the discriminatory conduct and when it occurred
• The basis for the discrimination (national origin)

Step 3: CRD Investigation and Right-to-Sue

After you file, the CRD will review your complaint. You can request an immediate right-to-sue letter without waiting for the CRD to complete a full investigation. This allows you to proceed directly to court. If you want the CRD to investigate first, that process typically takes several months to over a year.

Once you have a right-to-sue letter, you have one year to file a civil lawsuit in California Superior Court.

Remedies Available for National Origin Discrimination

If your national origin discrimination claim succeeds, California law provides a broad range of remedies. These are discussed in greater depth in our guide to discrimination damages in California.

Available remedies under FEHA include:

Economic damages:

• Back pay (wages you lost because of the discrimination)
• Front pay (future lost earnings if reinstatement is not feasible)
• Lost benefits (health insurance, retirement contributions, etc.)
• Compensation for reduced earning capacity

Non-economic damages:

• Emotional distress compensation
• Damages for humiliation and loss of dignity
• Compensation for anxiety and mental anguish

Punitive damages:

• Available when an employer's conduct was malicious, oppressive, or fraudulent
• California imposes no statutory cap on punitive damages under FEHA, unlike federal Title VII

Other relief:

• Reinstatement to your former position
• Policy changes at the employer (injunctive relief)
• Attorney's fees and litigation costs (if you prevail)

The absence of a damages cap under FEHA is significant. Discrimination cases in California can result in substantial verdicts, particularly when the employer's conduct was egregious or when the employer has a documented pattern of discrimination.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can my employer require me to speak English at work?

In limited circumstances, yes. California law permits English-only rules only when the employer has a genuine business reason for requiring English in a specific situation, and only if employees have been notified of the rule and its consequences. A blanket all-day English-only policy with no legitimate justification is likely unlawful under FEHA. If you were disciplined for speaking your native language in a situation where there was no valid reason to require English, this may be national origin discrimination.

Is it discrimination if my employer assumes I am undocumented because of my accent or where I am from?

It can be. Using someone's accent, surname, or appearance to assume their immigration status, and then treating them adversely because of that assumed status, is a form of national origin discrimination. California law prohibits this type of assumption-based treatment, regardless of what a worker's actual immigration status is.

What if the discrimination was committed by a coworker, not my manager?

Employers are legally responsible for harassment or discrimination by coworkers if the employer knew or should have known about the conduct and failed to take reasonable steps to stop it. If you reported the conduct to HR or a supervisor and nothing was done, the employer may be liable. Document your reports and any lack of response.

Does California law protect workers who speak with an accent?

Yes. An employer cannot make employment decisions based solely on an employee's accent unless the accent materially and demonstrably interferes with the ability to perform the job. A noticeable accent that does not prevent effective communication is not grounds for adverse employment action.

Can I sue my employer even if I still work there?

Yes. You do not have to be fired to have a discrimination claim. Ongoing harassment, denial of promotions, involuntary transfers to less desirable roles, pay disparities, and hostile working conditions can all form the basis of a claim while you remain employed. You can file a complaint with the CRD while continuing to work for the employer.

Related Topics

If you are researching national origin discrimination, these related articles may also be helpful:

• Race discrimination in California — National origin and race discrimination frequently overlap, particularly for workers who face bias rooted in both ethnicity and physical appearance
• How to file a CRD complaint in California — Step-by-step instructions for submitting your administrative complaint
• Discrimination damages in California — A detailed look at what compensation you can recover under FEHA

Get Help With Your National Origin Discrimination Claim

National origin discrimination cases often involve nuanced facts: patterns of conduct, ambiguous comments, or policies that appear neutral on their face. Building a strong claim requires careful documentation and a clear understanding of how California law applies to your specific situation.

If you believe you have experienced national origin discrimination at work, getting a professional assessment of your case early in the process can make a meaningful difference in the outcome. An experienced California employment attorney can evaluate your evidence, advise you on the filing deadline that applies to your situation, and help you understand the full range of remedies available.

Not sure if your situation qualifies? Get a free, confidential case review from a California employment law expert.

Disclaimer: The information on this page is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Employment laws vary by state and change frequently. For advice specific to your situation, consult a licensed employment attorney in your state. Employment Law Aid is not a law firm and does not provide legal representation.