Department of Fair Employment and Housing Is Now the “Civil Rights Department”
Combatting discrimination, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) investigates and mediates or prosecutes complaints under the state’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).
The DFEH also enforces state civil rights laws under:
- The Ralph Civil Rights Act (deterring “hate violence”);
- The California Trafficking Victims Protection Act (prohibiting human trafficking);
- The Unruh Civil Rights Act (prohibiting businesses and public accommodations from denying services to or discriminating against individuals based on a protected characteristic such as race, gender, disability or national origin);
- The Disabled Persons Act (providing disabled individuals the same full and free access to public facilities and places); and
- Civil Code section 51.9 (prohibiting sexual harassment by a person who has a business, service or professional relationship with another, such as doctor-patient or lawyer-client).
To increase awareness of its mission and to better enable the public to access its services, effective July 1, 2022, the DFEH has been renamed the Civil Rights Department (CRD).
The CRD is the largest state civil rights agency in the United States. It is empowered “to protect the people of California from unlawful discrimination in employment, housing, businesses, and state-funded programs, and from bias-motivated violence and human trafficking.”
Through https://calcivilrights.ca.gov the CRD offers updated website content, posters and brochures.
For additional assistance, please contact one of our attorneys Tim Bowles, Cindy Bamforthor Helena Kobrin.
See also:
- Happier and Healthier – Workplace Policy Handbook & Forms for 2022 (April 29, 2022)
- Cautionary Tale Episode 54 – Speed Bump – California Sues Tesla for Race Discrimination and Harassment (April 15, 2022)
- What’s New in 2022 — Peace but No Quiet – California Limits Confidentiality on Settlement of Workplace Discrimination Claims (October 22, 2021)
- Abolishing Workplace Bigotry: A Work in Progress (March 5, 2020)
Cindy Bamforth
September 1, 2022