Wrongful Termination Lawyer in San Jose
California wrongful termination representation for San Jose workers fired for protected reasons. Free, confidential consultation. We represent employees only.
California is at-will. That doesn't mean you can be fired for anything. It means the employer doesn't have to prove cause - until you can show the firing was for an illegal reason. Reporting a safety problem, asking for a break you're owed, taking pregnancy leave, telling HR about harassment, refusing to do something illegal - none of those are legal reasons to fire you.
Tech layoffs that target older engineers, hospital terminations that follow patient-safety reports, and university dismissals that follow Title IX complaints all share a similar structure. The job is to surface the timeline, the decision-makers, and the documents.
Visit our San Jose office at 181 Devine St Suite 4, San Jose, CA 95110 or call (408) 834-4320 for a free, confidential consultation.
What Is Wrongful Termination in San Jose
California is an at-will state, but the at-will rule has many exceptions. The leading case is Tameny v. Atlantic Richfield Co. (1980) 27 Cal.3d 167, which established the public-policy tort: an employee fired for refusing to commit an illegal act, for asserting a statutory right, or for reporting illegal conduct can sue in tort. Other San Jose wrongful-termination grounds include FEHA (Cal. Government Code section 12940), Labor Code section 1102.5 (whistleblower retaliation), Labor Code section 6310 (Cal/OSHA retaliation), Labor Code section 232 (wage-discussion retaliation), and Labor Code section 132a (workers' compensation retaliation).
San Jose Industries Where Wrongful Termination Claims Are Most Common
- Silicon Valley public-company tech workers - at the major Silicon Valley public technology companies headquartered in San Jose: Cisco Systems (NASDAQ: CSCO - 170 West Tasman Drive, leading global networking equipment company), Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE - 345 Park Avenue, leading software company), eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY - 2025 Hamilton Avenue), PayPal (NASDAQ: PYPL), Western Digital (NASDAQ: WDC - 5601 Great Oaks Parkway, leading data-storage technology company with 10,001+ employees), HP Inc. (NYSE: HPQ), Verifone, Calyx Software, and Sage Intacct. Tech workers are covered by all standard California FEHA, Labor Code, and federal Title VII / ADA / ADEA / FMLA protections. Public-company employees are also protected by Sarbanes-Oxley (18 U.S.C. section 1514A) for accounting/securities fraud whistleblower claims and Dodd-Frank section 922 (15 U.S.C. section 78u-6) for securities-law whistleblower claims. Stay-or-pay agreements (training repayment, sign-on bonus clawback, relocation-cost clawback) are void for work performed in San Jose after January 1, 2026 under AB 692 (California Labor Code section 926). Non-competes are void under California Business and Professions Code section 16600 (with AB 1076 and SB 699 making this rule extraterritorial as of January 1, 2024).
- Healthcare workers - at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center / SCVMC (751 South Bascom Avenue, San Jose, CA 95128, (408) 885-5000 - 731-bed (574 acute) county-owned public tertiary teaching hospital affiliated with the Stanford University Medical School; the principal safety-net hospital in Santa Clara County), Kaiser Permanente San Jose Medical Center, Good Samaritan Hospital, Regional Medical Center of San Jose, and O'Connor Hospital. Covered by SB 525 healthcare worker minimum-wage schedule (Cal. Labor Code sections 1182.14, 1182.15, 1182.16), California Health and Safety Code section 1278.5 ($25,000-per-violation civil penalty for patient-safety retaliation), and California Nurses Association (CNA) / SEIU-UHW collective bargaining agreements (which do not waive statutory FEHA or California Labor Code rights). SCVMC employees, as county employees, are subject to the 6-month Government Claims Act deadline.
- Higher education and K-12 workers - at San Jose State University / SJSU (1 Washington Square, San Jose, CA 95192 - founding campus of the California State University system; state-of-California employees subject to civil-service rules and CFA collective bargaining), the San Jose-Evergreen Community College District (San Jose City College and Evergreen Valley College), and multiple K-12 districts including the San Jose Unified School District, East Side Union High School District (830 North Capitol Avenue, (408) 347-5000 - one of the largest high school districts in Northern California), Berryessa Union School District, Alum Rock Union School District, and Oak Grove School District. Protected by Skelly v. State Personnel Board (1975) 15 Cal.3d 194 due-process rights, California Whistleblower Protection Act (Cal. Gov. Code section 8547), and the 6-month Government Claims Act deadline (Cal. Gov. Code section 911.2).
- Public-sector and government workers - at the City of San Jose (200 East Santa Clara Street), the County of Santa Clara (San Jose is the county seat), the San Jose Police Department (SJPD), the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office, the Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC - owned and operated by the City of San Jose), and the Valley Transportation Authority (VTA). Peace officers are covered by the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights (POBR, Cal. Gov. Code section 3300 et seq.). Subject to the 6-month Government Claims Act deadline.
- Retail and consumer-services workers - at Westfield Valley Fair (a super-regional shopping center on the San Jose/Santa Clara border, 1,800,000+ sq ft), Santana Row (Federal Realty's mixed-use district), Westgate Mall, The Plant San Jose, and chain retailers throughout the city. San Jose workers covered by the San Jose Minimum Wage Ordinance earn $18.45/hour effective January 1, 2026 (was $17.95/hour for 2025). The San Jose Opportunity to Work Ordinance (effective March 13, 2017) requires employers with 36 or more employees to offer additional work hours to existing qualified part-time workers before hiring new employees - stronger than California state law. Fast-food workers at chains with 60+ national locations earn the $20.00/hour AB 1228 floor (Cal. Labor Code section 1474).
- Hospitality and convention workers - at hotels around the San Jose Convention Center (150 West San Carlos Street) including the San Jose Marriott, Hilton San Jose, Westin San Jose, and dozens of smaller hotels and motels. Hospitality workers are covered by the San Jose Minimum Wage Ordinance and the Opportunity to Work Ordinance. Sexual harassment by hotel guests is covered by FEHA Cal. Gov. Code section 12940(j) (third-party harassment). Tipped restaurant and bar workers earn full San Jose minimum wage of $18.45/hour plus tips (Cal. Labor Code section 351 prohibits tip pooling abuses).
- Manufacturing and biotech workers - at Jabil Circuit, numerous semiconductor and electronics manufacturers throughout San Jose, and biotech operations. Manufacturing workers are covered by Cal/OSHA standards (Cal. Code Regs., tit. 8) and California Labor Code section 6310 (retaliation for safety reporting). Federal contractor workers have additional NDAA section 4712 whistleblower protection (41 U.S.C. section 4712). Public-company manufacturing employees also have Sarbanes-Oxley (18 U.S.C. section 1514A) and Dodd-Frank (15 U.S.C. section 78u-6) protection.
San Jose Mass-Layoff Notice Rights
If you were part of a San Jose mass layoff, the California WARN Act (California Labor Code sections 1400 through 1408) requires covered employers with 75 or more workers to give 60 days' advance written notice of a mass layoff of 50 or more employees in any 30-day period, a plant closing, or a relocation. Federal WARN (29 U.S.C. sections 2101-2109) applies to employers with 100+ employees. Damages: up to 60 days of back pay and benefits, plus an additional civil penalty of up to $500 per day under federal WARN if notice is not given to the local government. SB 617 (effective January 1, 2026) expanded the required notice content.
California Law
For the full California framework, including Tameny, Labor Code section 1102.5, FEHA, Cal-WARN, and public-employee due-process rights, see our California employment law page.
What Compensation Can You Recover
Back pay, front pay (or reinstatement where appropriate), emotional-distress damages, punitive damages (unlimited under FEHA and under the Tameny tort), 60-day Cal-WARN back-pay damages where applicable, and attorneys' fees and costs (Cal. Government Code section 12965(c); Labor Code section 1102.5(j)). For details, see our California employment law page.
How to File a Wrongful Termination Claim in San Jose
FEHA charges go to the California Civil Rights Department (CRD), Oakland Office, 1515 Clay Street, Suite 701, Oakland, CA 94612. Federal charges go to the EEOC San Jose Local Office (Santa Clara County jurisdiction), 96 N. Third Street, Suite 250, San Jose, CA 95112. Whistleblower and wage claims can be filed with the California Labor Commissioner (DLSE San Jose Office, 224 Airport Parkway, Suite 300, San Jose, CA 95110, (408) 277-1266). Civil suits are heard at the Santa Clara County Superior Court, Hall of Justice, 190-200 West Hedding Street, San Jose, CA 95110. Call us at (408) 834-4320 before any deadline.
Frequently Asked Questions
A Tameny claim is a tort for wrongful termination in violation of public policy, recognized by the California Supreme Court in Tameny v. Atlantic Richfield Co. (1980) 27 Cal.3d 167. San Jose workers can pursue Tameny claims when the firing violates a fundamental public policy - refusing to commit a crime, reporting illegal conduct, exercising a statutory right, or performing a legal duty. Two-year statute. Damages can include lost wages, emotional distress, and punitive damages.
Cal-WARN (Labor Code sections 1400 et seq.) requires 60-day written notice for layoffs at California employers with 75 or more employees. The threshold is in Labor Code section 1400.5(a). If the worker's employer didn't give notice, a worker may be entitled to back pay, benefits, and civil penalties - up to 60 days' worth. The state's WARN tracker and EDD list filed notices. If a worker can't find one for the worker's employer, that's the first sign something's off.
Labor Code section 1102.5 (whistleblower) has a 3-year statute. SB 497 gives a worker a 90-day rebuttable presumption that the firing was retaliation. Labor Code section 98.6 (administrative claim with the Labor Commissioner) is 1 year (AB 1947, eff. Jan 1, 2021). Save every text, every email, and every prior performance review showing the worker are doing fine.
Yes. CSU employees (SJSU) and UC employees both get civil-service-style due process before discipline. Skelly v. State Personnel Bd. (1975) 15 Cal.3d 194 requires notice, the materials being used against a worker, and a chance to respond. SJSU agreed to pay $1.6 million on September 21, 2021 to 13 female student-athletes ($125,000 each) sexually harassed by athletic trainer Scott Shaw under an U.S. DOJ Title IX case; the DOJ also separately found the university had retaliated against two employees who urged it to address the assaults. The DOJ resolution shows that public-employee retaliation claims do get traction, but the deadlines (especially the 6-month government claim under Government Code section 911.2 for non-FEHA torts) are tight.
Were You Wrongfully Fired?
Speak with a California wrongful termination lawyer today. Free confidential consultation. No fee unless you win. Call 1-800-371-3088.
Legal Disclaimer: This page is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Employment law is complex and fact-specific. The information on this page reflects California law as of 2026 and may change. If you believe your rights have been violated, please consult a licensed California employment attorney to evaluate your specific situation.