Working at a private school can be different from working in California’s public school system. Private schools may have smaller staffs, individual employment contracts, or a religious mission that shapes school operations.
But working for a private school does not mean giving up the employment protections available to other California workers. Private school employee rights in California can include protections involving discrimination, harassment, retaliation, disability accommodations, pregnancy, leave, and termination.
The rules can become more complicated when the employer is a religious school or when an employee’s duties include teaching religion or other religious responsibilities.
What Employment Rights Do Private-School Employees Have?
Private school employment law includes many of the same workplace protections that apply to other private employers in California, although each law has different coverage requirements and exemptions.
For example, the California Civil Rights Department (CRD) states that the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) prohibits employers with five or more employees from discriminating against workers because of protected characteristics. FEHA’s harassment protections apply to workplaces of any size, including those with fewer than five employees.
Depending on the employer and circumstances, protections may address:
- Race, color, ancestry, or national origin
- Sex, gender, and sexual orientation
- Age for workers 40 and older
- Physical and mental disabilities
- Pregnancy and related medical conditions
- Religious creed
- Harassment based on a protected characteristic
- Retaliation for exercising certain workplace rights
The Manukyan Law Firm guide to California’s FEHA provides more background on the state’s employment discrimination law.
How Is Private-School Employment Different From Public-School Employment?
Public-school teachers and other employees work for government entities and may have rights created by California’s Education Code, public-sector collective bargaining laws, or other rules governing public employment.
A private-school employee works for a private employer. The employee therefore does not receive public-sector employment protections simply because the job involves teaching.
A private school teacher’s rights in California may depend on several sources, including:
- California and federal employment laws
- The employee’s written contract
- The school’s policies and handbook
- A collective bargaining agreement, if applicable
- The particular reason for discipline, nonrenewal, or termination
The California Department of Education also states that the Education Code does not require private-school teachers to hold a California teaching credential.
That makes the terms of a private school teacher contract particularly important when a dispute involves renewal, termination, compensation, or job duties.
Do Different Rules Apply to Religious Schools?
Yes. Religious school employee rights can involve additional legal questions that do not arise at secular private schools.
FEHA’s Religious-Organization Exemption
FEHA’s definition of an employer does not include a nonprofit religious association or corporation. The CRD identifies nonprofit religious associations and corporations as outside FEHA’s general definition of an employer.
That means an employee at a qualifying religious school should not assume that FEHA applies in the same way it would at a secular private school.
Other state and federal laws may still apply, depending on the employer, the employee, and the type of claim involved.
The Ministerial Exception
A separate issue is the First Amendment’s ministerial exception.
In Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru, the U.S. Supreme Court emphasized the employee’s actual religious responsibilities rather than applying a rigid formula based solely on job title. The Court considered the role an employee performed in carrying out a religious institution’s mission.
For a private-school employee, relevant duties could include teaching religion, leading students in prayer, or helping transmit the school’s faith.
The analysis depends heavily on the employee’s actual role. Simply working for a religious school does not, by itself, answer the ministerial-exception question.
Discrimination, Harassment, and Retaliation
Where FEHA applies, a private school cannot lawfully make employment decisions because of a protected characteristic.
For example, potential private school discrimination in California could involve an employee alleging that race, sex, disability, age, or another protected characteristic influenced hiring, promotion, discipline, compensation, or termination.
Harassment is different from a disagreement with a supervisor or colleague. The conduct must meet applicable legal requirements and be connected to a protected characteristic.
An adverse employment action that closely follows an employee’s discrimination complaint, accommodation request, or other legally protected activity may deserve closer examination.
California CRD data show that workplace disputes involving these issues occur across many industries. The figures below are statewide employment complaint data, not private-school-specific statistics.
| Employment Complaint Basis | Number of Times Alleged |
| Reported or resisted discrimination or harassment | 11,837 |
| Sex/gender | 9,131 |
| Requested or used a disability-related accommodation | 8,288 |
| Race | 7,655 |
| Requested or used family care and medical leave | 5,184 |
| Pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions | 2,149 |
Reported or resisted discrimination or harassment
Number of Times Alleged: 11,837
Sex/gender
Number of Times Alleged: 9,131
Requested or used a disability-related accommodation
Number of Times Alleged: 8,288
Race
Number of Times Alleged: 7,655
Requested or used family care and medical leave
Number of Times Alleged: 5,184
Pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, or related medical conditions
Number of Times Alleged: 2,149
Source: California Civil Rights Department 2024 Annual Report. One complaint can include multiple bases, so these figures should not be interpreted as the number of individual cases.
For additional context, see our Los Angeles County employment discrimination statistics.
Disability and Pregnancy Accommodations
For employers covered by FEHA, California law requires reasonable accommodation for a qualified employee with a physical or mental disability unless the accommodation would cause an undue hardship. Employers also have obligations involving the interactive process.
Possible accommodations can include modified duties, schedule changes, leave for medical care, or changes to the work area.
Employees considering a private school disability accommodation can read more about requesting disability accommodations at work.
Pregnancy can create separate rights. For example, Pregnancy Disability Leave applies when an employee is disabled by pregnancy, childbirth, or a related medical condition and works for an employer with five or more employees. Eligible workers can receive up to four months of job-protected leave, depending on the period of disability and their work schedule.
What Leave Rights Apply at Private Schools?
Under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), eligible employees of employers with at least five employees can receive up to 12 weeks of job-protected leave for qualifying reasons. Employees must have worked for the employer for at least one year and completed at least 1,250 hours of service during the previous year.
California paid sick leave rules also cover most employees who work for the same employer in California for at least 30 days within a year.
The guide to California workplace leave laws covers additional types of leave that may apply
Can a Private School Simply Decide Not to Renew a Contract?
Private schools typically employ teachers and other staff under contracts covering a particular school year, and a decision not to renew a contract is not necessarily unlawful. However, the reason for the nonrenewal still matters.
A private school wrongful termination or nonrenewal issue may require closer examination when the decision follows events such as:
- Reporting discrimination or harassment
- Requesting a disability accommodation
- Taking protected leave
- Disclosing a pregnancy
- Complaining about legally protected workplace conditions
- Raising other concerns protected by law
The timing alone does not establish that a termination or nonrenewal was prohibited by law. It can, however, be one piece of the surrounding evidence.
Employment contracts, handbooks, emails, performance reviews, disciplinary records, accommodation requests, and notices concerning contract renewal may help establish what occurred and when.
An employee placed on a performance plan can also review this California performance improvement plan guide. Employees who believe working conditions are being changed to pressure them to resign can read about situations in which an employer may be trying to make an employee quit.
California’s Private-School Workforce Is Significant
Private education remains a substantial part of California’s school system.
For the 2025–26 school year, California Department of Education data show 2,995 private schools with six or more students, enrolling 486,825 students. CDE also reports separately on private schools with fewer than six students.
Those schools employ teachers along with administrators, counselors, coaches, admissions personnel, office workers, and other staff whose employment rights can depend on the particular law and circumstances involved.
When a Termination or Nonrenewal Deserves a Closer Look
Understanding employment rights at private schools in California is especially important when a teacher or staff member loses a position. The employee’s contract, the school’s stated reason, performance history, timing of the decision, and any recent complaints, accommodation requests, pregnancy-related issues, or protected leave can all be relevant.
For employees of religious schools, the school’s status and the employee’s duties may raise additional questions.
Have Questions About Your Private-School Employment Rights?
Employment issues at private schools can become complicated, particularly when a dispute involves a contract nonrenewal, discrimination, retaliation, disability or pregnancy accommodations, protected leave, or a religious-school exception.
If you are unsure how California employment law applies to your situation, speaking with a private school employment lawyer can help you understand how your contract, workplace policies, and the circumstances surrounding the school’s actions may affect your rights.
Manukyan Law Firm offers a free consultation to California employees with questions about their employment rights. Schedule your consultation appointment.
