Can I be fired for filing a workers’ comp claim in California?

No, not because of the claim. California Labor Code 132a makes it illegal for an employer to fire, threaten to fire or “in any manner” discriminate against a worker because the worker filed a workers’ comp claim. The rule also covers a worker who said they intended to file one or who received a rating, award or settlement. A worker who believes that happened can file a petition with the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB), the state’s workers’ comp court, within one year of the discriminatory act or the firing.

Section 132a is about the employer’s reason. A decision that has nothing to do with the claim falls outside it.

What does Labor Code 132a prohibit?

The section opens with a policy: “there should not be discrimination against workers who are injured in the course and scope of their employment.” It then covers four situations. An employer may not fire, threaten or discriminate against a worker over a claim, an application for adjudication (the filing that opens a WCAB case), or a rating, award or settlement. An insurer may not push an employer to fire a worker for those reasons. The last two paragraphs protect a coworker who testifies, or says they will testify, in another worker’s case.

The guidebook from the Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC), the state agency that runs the system, gives an example from the return-to-work stage. If an employer takes or threatens action because a worker turns down an assignment that breaks the doctor’s work restrictions, “this could be a violation of California Labor Code Section 132a” (Guidebook, Chapter 6).

The protection is in the claim paperwork from the start. The employer must give the worker a notice of potential eligibility with the DWC-1 claim form, and that notice has to describe the protections against discrimination in section 132a (Labor Code 5401(b)(8)).

What can the WCAB order in a 132a case?

Labor Code 132a(1) sets the remedies for discrimination by an employer. The worker’s compensation is “increased by one-half, but in no event more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000),” plus costs and expenses up to $250. Section 132a(1) also provides for reinstatement and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits caused by the employer’s acts.

A violation is also a misdemeanor, but the statute gives the appeals board no jurisdiction over the criminal charge. The board may refer it to the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (the Labor Commissioner’s Office) or to the public prosecutor, and any worker may report it to either one.

How and when is a 132a petition filed?

A 132a petition must be filed within one year of the discriminatory act or the date the worker was fired. I&A Guide 7, from the DWC’s Information and Assistance unit, explains the filing. The petition goes on the DWC’s petition for discrimination form with a verification, the petitioner’s statement under penalty of perjury that it is true. It is filed at the local WCAB office with copies to every party.

The petition can be filed only when there is a pending WCAB case, which means an Application for Adjudication of Claim is on file (I&A Guide 4). Getting a hearing on it takes a declaration of readiness to proceed, the form that asks the WCAB to set one (I&A Guide 5). Guide 7 also warns that “employer discrimination can be very difficult to prove.”

Where does a 132a claim end and a wrongful-termination or FEHA claim begin?

A 132a petition belongs to the workers’ comp case and is decided by a workers’ compensation judge. Claims under other employment laws are separate cases, heard somewhere else. DWC Fact Sheet G says workers’ compensation judges “do not hear civil or criminal matters.”

The DWC guidebook says the federal Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) make it illegal for an employer to discriminate because of a serious disability. For disability discrimination, it lists the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the state Civil Rights Department. A wrongful-termination lawsuit is also brought in civil court, not at the WCAB. Each of those paths has its own steps and deadlines, which run separately from the one-year 132a window.

How do the two kinds of claims compare?

The difference is mostly where the claim is heard and what it can reach.

	Labor Code 132a petition	Civil employment claim (FEHA, ADA, wrongful termination)
Where it is decided	A workers’ compensation judge, inside the comp case	Outside the WCAB, which does not hear civil matters
What it is about	Discrimination because of a claim, a stated intent to file, or a rating, award or settlement	Disability discrimination and other employment claims
Deadline	One year from the discriminatory act or the date of termination	Set by those laws, separately
What it can provide	Compensation increased by one-half up to $10,000, costs up to $250, reinstatement, lost wages and work benefits	Set by those laws, not by the 132a cap
Filing	DWC petition form, with a pending WCAB case	Through the EEOC, the Civil Rights Department or the courts

Sources: Labor Code 132a; DWC I&A Guide 7; DWC Fact Sheet G (April 2024); DWC Guidebook Chapter 2 and Chapter 11 (May 2024). Read October 8, 2026.

Can an at-will employee still use 132a?

Yes. A California job with no fixed term is generally “at will,” meaning either side can end it on notice (Labor Code 2922). Section 132a does not change that. It bars a decision made because of the claim.

The guidebook says an employer “is not always required to offer you a job that you want,” and its decision “may be justified by business realities.” If the reason is the job injury or the request for benefits, that “could be a violation” of 132a. If the reason is a serious and permanent disability and the job could be done with a reasonable accommodation, it could violate the ADA and FEHA (Guidebook, Chapter 6).

Does losing the job end the workers’ comp claim?

Not by itself, but timing matters. The DWC guidebook warns that workers’ comp “may not cover an injury that is reported to the employer after the worker is told he or she will be terminated or laid off.”

Labor Code 3600(a)(10) sets the rule for a claim filed after a notice of termination or layoff, for an injury before the notice. Compensation is not paid unless the worker shows at least one of four things: the employer had notice of the injury before the termination notice; medical records from before the notice show the injury; the date of injury falls after the notice but before the termination takes effect; or, for a cumulative injury, the Labor Code 5412 date of injury falls after the notice.

A notice that is not followed by the termination or layoff within 60 days does not trigger the rule. Frequent notices count as a bad faith personnel action, and the rule then does not apply. Psychiatric claims have a similar rule in Labor Code 3208.3(e). A denial on these grounds is disputed like any other denied workers’ comp claim.

What do people get wrong about being fired after a claim?

• “Filing a claim means I can’t be let go.” Section 132a bars a firing because of the claim, not every firing.
• “The 132a deadline is the same as the comp deadline.” The 132a clock runs one year from the discriminatory act or the termination. The one-year limit for the comp case itself, in Labor Code 5405, runs from the date of injury, from the end of any period covered by disability payments, or from the last date medical treatment was provided.
• “Settling the comp case settles everything with the employer.” The DWC’s Compromise and Release form says signing it “has no effect on claims that are not within the scope of the workers’ compensation law,” unless otherwise expressly stated.

Where does the firm fit?

The Law Office of Jesse Melendrez practices California workers’ compensation for injured workers. In a 132a matter, our work happens inside the comp case at the WCAB: the application, the petition and the hearing. Claims under FEHA or for wrongful termination are filed outside the WCAB, and this page does not cover them.

This is general information, not advice about any one job or claim. If your job changed after you reported an injury, tell us what happened.

What should I read next?

• If the claim itself was denied: My workers’ comp claim was denied in California. What now?
• Deadlines with their sections: How long do I have to report a work injury and file a claim?
• How a WCAB case moves: What happens at the WCAB?
• If the paychecks stopped: Workers’ comp, SDI and Social Security disability