A Message from the Director

Welcome to the Web site of the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH). The DFEH is California’s civil rights agency, the largest among all 50 states. The Department takes in, investigates, conciliates, mediates and prosecutes violations under the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), Disabled Persons Act, Unruh Civil Rights Act and Ralph Civil Rights Act. The Department issues regulations that implement,  interpret  and make specific the procedures of the DFEH. 

The DFEH has six California offices in Elk Grove, Bakersfield, Fresno, Los Angeles, Oakland, and San Jose to serve you. Effective March 1, 2012, the Department will consolidate its Oakland and San Jose offices in a single Bay Area Regional Office in Fremont, a move praised by Senate Majority Leader Ellen Corbett, who represents Fremont, and reported by the San Francisco Chronicle and the San Jose Mercury News.

The Department recently received final court approval of a multi-million dollar California Family Rights Act class action in Dept. Fair Empl. & Hous. v. Verizon Services Corp. The court found the settlement to be "fair, reasonable. adequate and in the best interest of the CFRA Claimant and other Class Members," particularly because "the DFEH has not asked for award of attorneys' fees or costs, so that the entire Settlement Amount may be used for payment of claims to the CFRA Claimants as found by the DFEH."

In addition, the DFEH has established innovative clinical programs to train a new generation of civil rights lawyers and investigators with UC Irvine and UC Davis Schools of Law, and California State University at Bakersfield.

New items this month. 

• Read the new article on Building a Better Fair Housing Practice in California. 
• March 2, 2012, 7:30-11:30 am: Employment Round Table of Southern California (ERTSC) Breakfast Seminar, "Advanced Issues in Employment Investigations," RAND Corporation, 1776 Main St., Santa Monica, CA 90407.  Register at http://ertscseminar.eventbrite.com/.

To learn more about the Department, explore the DFEH Web site, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and Twitter pages. 

I Want To:

• Schedule an Appointment
  First step to file a complaint.
• Obtain a Right to Sue Notice
  Request a Right to Sue Notice and go straight to court without DFEH investigating your complaint.
  

• Amend a Right to Sue Notice
  Request changes to a Right to Sue Notice.

• Submit a Public Records Request
  Submit or check the status of a Public Records Request.
• Check the Status of a Complaint
  Contact your investigator directly. If you have lost that information, or need other help regarding a specific complaint, please contact us.
  
• Subscribe to Civil Rights Case Law Alerts
  Receive alerts about new California and federal decisions, cases pending, new laws on employment and housing discrimination, public accommodations and hate violence.
• Subscribe to Webinar Alerts
  Receive invitations and reminders about webinar training opportunities .
• Request a Speaker
  Request a DFEH representative attend and speak at your event or training.
• Register for a Webinar
  Information about monthly training webinars presented by a DFEH attorney.
• Ask a Question
  About a final paycheck, overtime, minimum wage, vacation policy, breaks, eviction, rent or landlord/tenant issues.
  
  

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