The numbers at a glance
- 2,066 disability charges filed in California with the EEOC in fiscal 2025, 43.5 percent of all charges
- 14,430 California right to sue complaints alleging disability discrimination in 2024, the most of any basis
- 8,288 alleging retaliation for requesting a disability accommodation
- 2,174 disability complaints CRD accepted for investigation in 2024, 53.3 percent of its employment caseload
- 36,256 disability charges nationwide in fiscal 2025, a record
Disability claims have grown for a simple reason: the law defines disability broadly, California more broadly than federal law, and it imposes an affirmative duty to accommodate and to engage in an interactive process. Every refused accommodation, every leave that was not extended and every medical condition treated as a performance problem is a potential claim, and the counts show that.
California disability charges by year
| Fiscal year | California charges, disability | Share of all California charges | U.S. charges | California share of U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,066 | 43.5% | 36,256 | 5.7% |
| 2024 | 1,978 | 38.8% | 33,668 | 5.9% |
| 2023 | 1,716 | 33.4% | 29,160 | 5.9% |
| 2022 | 1,338 | 30.4% | 25,004 | 5.4% |
| 2021 | 1,381 | 35.7% | 22,843 | 6.0% |
| 2020 | 1,502 | 36.4% | 24,324 | 6.2% |
| 2019 | 1,487 | 34.8% | 24,238 | 6.1% |
| 2018 | 1,499 | 34.5% | 24,605 | 6.1% |
| 2017 | 1,915 | 35.3% | 26,838 | 7.1% |
| 2016 | 1,912 | 32.6% | 28,073 | 6.8% |
| 2015 | 1,975 | 31.9% | 26,968 | 7.3% |
| 2014 | 1,988 | 31.2% | 25,369 | 7.8% |
| 2013 | 2,125 | 30.8% | 25,957 | 8.2% |
| 2012 | 2,236 | 30.2% | 26,379 | 8.5% |
| 2011 | 2,110 | 29.4% | 25,742 | 8.2% |
| 2010 | 2,017 | 28.2% | 25,165 | 8.0% |
| 2009 | 1,586 | 23.8% | 21,451 | 7.4% |
Disability rose from 23.8 percent of California charges in fiscal 2009 to 43.5 percent in fiscal 2025, the largest gain of any basis. The 2009 amendments to the Americans with Disabilities Act, which widened the definition of disability, explain the first step up; the growth since reflects mental health conditions, long term illness and pandemic era leave disputes.
A note on how to read the EEOC figures. The EEOC counts a charge under every basis it alleges, so a single charge that claims sex discrimination and retaliation shows up in both columns and the columns add up to more than the total. The state figures cover charges filed with the EEOC itself, not the tens of thousands of complaints California workers file with the state Civil Rights Department, which we cover separately.
State complaints, disability, accommodation, medical condition and leave
| Basis | Right to sue 2024 | Right to sue 2023 | Right to sue 2022 | Investigated 2024 | Investigated 2023 | Investigated 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Disability | 14,430 | 13,686 | 10,349 | 2,174 | 2,008 | 1,832 |
| Requested disability accommodation | 8,288 | 5,308 | 3,679 | 958 | 918 | 758 |
| Medical condition | 5,700 | 5,600 | 4,558 | 120 | 112 | 106 |
| CFRA | 8,340 | 6,885 | 5,975 | 231 | 319 | 214 |
| Requested CFRA leave | 5,184 | 2,922 | 2,518 | 505 | 410 | 417 |
| Genetic information | 1,148 | 3,229 | 1,088 | 47 | 30 | 19 |
Disability leads every column. In the 2024 right to sue complaints it appeared 14,430 times, ahead of retaliation for reporting discrimination (11,837) and sex or gender (9,131). Add the accommodation request line and family leave and the picture is a caseload dominated by health and leave disputes.
A note on how to read the CRD figures. The Civil Rights Department publishes its numbers by calendar year, and it counts a complaint under every basis it lists, so the basis rows add up to more than the number of complaints. Most California workers who go to court first ask CRD for an immediate right to sue notice rather than an investigation, so the right to sue table is the closer measure of how many people are actually pursuing a claim.
Outcomes nationally
Nationally the EEOC resolved 35,317 disability charges in fiscal 2025. 2,989 settled, 3,090 were withdrawn with benefits, 939 ended in a reasonable cause finding, 21,305 in a no cause finding and 6,993 were closed administratively. Merit resolutions totaled 7,018, 19.9 percent of resolutions.
Disability charges have the highest count and one of the higher merit rates among the major bases, because accommodation disputes leave a paper trail: the request, the denial, the medical note, the termination.
What these numbers mean if it happened to you
- California defines disability as a condition that limits a major life activity, without the federal requirement that it be substantial, and it covers mental health conditions and many temporary conditions.
- Employers with five or more employees must accommodate and must engage in a timely, good faith interactive process. Failing to engage is a separate violation.
- Leave can be an accommodation. Firing someone at the end of a fixed leave period without considering more time is a common fact pattern in these files.
- Retaliation for asking for an accommodation is its own basis and was alleged 8,288 times in 2024 right to sue complaints.
Deadlines that decide these cases
A California worker has three years from the last act of harassment or discrimination to file with the Civil Rights Department, and one year after a right to sue notice to file in court. The federal deadline is much shorter, 300 days to file a charge with the EEOC. The counts on this page only include people who filed inside those windows. Everyone who waited too long is missing from every table here.
Denied an accommodation or fired over a medical condition?
Free, confidential review with a California employment lawyer.
Sources
The figures on this page were taken from the following publications, as released by the agencies. Percentages, changes, sums and rates per 100,000 workers are our own arithmetic from those figures.
- EEOC, Table E1b, charge receipts by state and basis, FY 2009 to FY 2025, www.eeoc.gov
- EEOC, Table E6a, disability (ADA) charge receipts and resolutions, FY 1992 to FY 2025, www.eeoc.gov
- California Civil Rights Department, 2024 Annual Report (complaint tables and county appendix), calcivilrights.ca.gov
- California Civil Rights Department, 2023 Annual Report, calcivilrights.ca.gov
- California Civil Rights Department, 2022 Annual Report, calcivilrights.ca.gov
Frequently asked questions
What is the most common type of discrimination complaint in California?
Are disability discrimination claims increasing?
Does anxiety or depression count as a disability in California?
What is the interactive process?
Attorney advertising. The figures on this page come from the public sources listed above and are reproduced or computed as described. They are provided for general information and do not constitute legal advice, nor does reading this page create an attorney-client relationship. Every case is different. If you believe your rights were violated, consult a California employment attorney promptly, filing deadlines apply.