Schifando

We granted review to determine whether a city employee must exhaust both the administrative remedy that the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (Gov. Code, 1 § 12900 et seq.) (FEHA) provides and the *1080 internal remedy that a city charter requires before filing an FEHA disability discrimination claim in superior court. We conclude the employee need not exhaust both administrative remedies, and that receiving a Department of Fair Employment and Housing (the Department) “right to sue” letter is a sufficient prerequisite to filing an FEHA claim in superior court.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Plaintiff Steve Schifando filed a complaint against the City of Los Angeles (the City) in Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleging employment discrimination based on physical disability under the FEHA. The complaint alleges the following: Schifando worked for defendant City’s Parks and Recreation Department as a storekeeper. He suffered from severe hypertension that made him dizzy and lightheaded in stressful situations. He informed two supervisors of his condition.

Schifando met with the two supervisors in August 1998 to discuss his objections to recent changes in his job…

The issue in this case is whether an employee who believes he has suffered disability discrimination as a result of a coerced resignation at the hands of a city employer must exhaust both the internal administrative remedy provided for such claims in the city charter and the separate administrative remedy provided by the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) (Gov. Code, § 12900 et seq.) before filing an FEHA-based action in superior court. The majority concludes the employee need not exhaust both administrative remedies, and that receiving a Department of Fair Employment and Housing (Department) “right to sue” letter is a sufficient prerequisite to filing a disability discrimination action in court. I disagree.

The majority’s holding today will authorize, if not encourage, public employees to forgo the very comprehensive internal grievance procedures that are designed to protect and vindicate their employment rights— procedures that also serve the dual purpose of affording public entities, such as charter cities and counties, the opportunity to exercise their constitutionally vested decisionmaking authority over matters of public employment, including employee…

We granted review to determine whether a city employee must exhaust both the administrative remedy that the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (Gov.Code, [1] § 12900 et seq.) (FEHA) provides and the internal remedy that a city charter requires before filing an FEHA disability discrimination claim in superior court. We conclude the employee need not exhaust both administrative remedies, and that receiving a Department of Fair Employment and Housing (the Department) "right to sue" letter is a sufficient prerequisite to filing an FEHA claim in superior court.

Plaintiff Steve Schifando filed a complaint against the City of Los Angeles (City) in Los Angeles County Superior Court, alleging employment discrimination based on physical disability under the FEHA. The complaint alleges the following: Schifando worked for defendant City's Parks and Recreation Department as a storekeeper. He suffered from severe hypertension that made him dizzy and lightheaded in stressful situations. He informed two supervisors of his condition.

Schifando met with the two supervisors in August 1998 to discuss his objections to recent changes in his job responsibilities. They argued with…