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Los Angeles Employment Law Blog

Settlement Reached In Race Discrimination Suit Against Wet Seal

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Employment Discrimination on Thursday, May 16, 2013.

Foothill Ranch-based Wet Seal Inc. has agreed to a $7.5 million settlement to end an employment discrimination case that claims the retailer denied promotions, denied pay increases or terminated managers from its stores based on the color of their skin. The lawsuit was filed last summer by three managers of Wet Seal stores in Pennsylvania.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) determined late last year that Wet Seal executives had openly promoted a white-only brand image for their stores. They referred to it as the "Armani look" and claimed it was imperative to the success of their brand. Needless to say, this resulted in discrimination based on race for those who did not fit the Armani white skin, blonde hair and blue eyes look that executives were after.

System Of Discrimination At Merck Unfairly Targets Women, Mothers

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Pregnancy Discrimination on Friday, May 10, 2013.

Kelli Smith, a sales representative for Merck, claims that she was essentially punished by the company for having a baby in 2010. She took maternity leave after the birth of her child and asserts in a recently-filed pregnancy discrimination lawsuit that she received poor performance reviews after taking job-protected medical leave that stalled her career.

Smith is seeking to assert not only her own rights to a workplace free from pregnancy discrimination, but also those of her former colleagues who experienced Merck's "[S]ystematic, companywide discriminatory treatment of its female employees on the basis of their gender and their taking federal and state-protected pregnancy leave."

Sharon Stones Denies Misconduct In 2nd Wrongful Termination Lawsuit

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Wrongful Termination on Thursday, May 2, 2013.

A year after she was fired from her position as a live-in nanny for Sharon Stone's children in 2011, Erlinda Elemen took legal steps to fight back against what she believes was harassment, discrimination and wrongful termination. Elemen asserted in her lawsuit that she endured religious- and raced-based harassment while working for Stone.

But Stone, who is also battling another wrongful termination lawsuit, recently filed documents claiming that Elemen's claims are without merit. Stone asserts that Elemen was let go after seven months of unsatisfactory work performance and availability.

Federal Protections May Be Coming For LGBT Workers

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Employment Discrimination on Saturday, April 27, 2013.

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), modeled after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, was recently introduced in the U.S. Congress. The Act would protect those who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender from employment discrimination based on their gender or sexual identity.

Specifically, employers would be prohibited from hiring, firing and promotion decisions based on an employee's or applicant's sexual orientation. While California has protections for LGBT workers, 29 other states still allow a person to legally be fired for being gay and 34 others allow an employer to fire an employee who is transgender.

Contract Phlebotomist Wins $1.5M Verdict In Sexual Harassment Case

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Sexual Harrassment on Friday, April 19, 2013.

A pattern of ongoing sexual harassment by members of the Oceanside Police Department has ended in a $1.5 million award from a Vista Superior Court jury. Kimberli Hirst was a contract phlebotomist for the department; she took blood samples from those accused of driving under the influence and was employed by American Forensic Nurses.

The officer involved in the sexual harassment admitted to making inappropriate and suggestive comments to Hirst but claimed that she welcomed the attention. He was fired in 2009.

Used Pregnancy Disability Leave Before Birth? No, You Are Not Out Of Time

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Pregnancy Discrimination on Friday, April 12, 2013.

After being put on bedrest in February because of a high-risk pregnancy and not scheduled to deliver until October, Ana Fuentes Sanchez was granted leave under the Pregnancy Disability Leave Law (PDLL). After being off work for 19 weeks - which included the four months under the PDLL and any accrued sick and vacation time - Swissport fired Sanchez for failing to return to work.

She was fired in July, with nearly three months of her high-risk pregnancy still ahead of her. She could not come back to work without putting hers or her baby's life in danger, but she did plan to come back shortly after the birth and anticipated needing little to no accommodation.

Kaiser Sued For Violating FMLA Leave Protections

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Medical and Family Leave on Wednesday, April 3, 2013.

A nurse formerly employed by Kaiser Permanente Medical Group is suing the California system for discrimination and retaliation for taking protected medical leave. Kirandeep Kaur had taken approved time off to help her mother recover from hip replacement surgery -leave that is protected under both the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and the California Family Rights Act (CFRA).

During her leave, Kaur asserts in her employment lawsuit that she was harassed by the hospital supervisor for taking time off, for taking too much time off and demanding that she return to work. When Kaur returned to work, the harassment did not stop. She came back to work at Kaiser in September, following her absence for one month on approved leave, and was fired in December. In that short time, she was also suspended for an internal investigation.

Dancers Charged For Stage Time By Club Owners Fight Back

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Class Action and Wage Claims on Monday, March 25, 2013.

Tired of having to pay club owners for the 'privilege' of providing entertainment for guests of gentlemen's clubs, dancers are fighting back. Improper classification of dancers as independent contractors rather than employees allowed club owners to charge fees to entertainers who made money solely off of the tips of club customers.

Hima B., a former stripper in California, is creating a documentary on what she considers unfair labor practices that unfairly target strippers for stage fees, commissions and other miscellaneous charges. Called 'Licensed to Pimp," the documentary details how misclassification of strippers as independent contractors rather than employees unfairly robs them of a fair wage, access to unemployment insurance and other labor protections guaranteed to California employees and employees throughout the United States.

To: CC: BCC: Whether Your Employer's On It, He Or She May Be Reading It

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Employment Law on Friday, March 15, 2013.

It's big news on the other coast: administration at Harvard University searched the emails of 16 members of the faculty. Administrators were trying to root out a leak; the university was embroiled in a cheating scandal last fall and there was reason to believe that the press had an inside source within the school that was providing information about how the scandal was being handled.

According to Harvard's own privacy policy, however, the university had to provide notice prior to or shortly after searching faculty - or its employees' - emails. Does this amount to an invasion of an employee's privacy? Does existing employment law regarding personal messages sent on work computers protect an employee from this type of search or disclosure?

Can Parents Take FMLA Leave To Care For Adult Sons Or Daughters?

On behalf of Bononi Law Group, LLP posted in Medical and Family Leave on Tuesday, March 5, 2013.

The Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows a worker to take unpaid job-protected leave for up to 12 weeks to care for him or herself or a family member, including an adult son or daughter. The U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division clarified earlier this year who qualifies as an adult son or daughter for purposes of taking FMLA medical leave. It may seem fairly intuitive, but here's what the federal agency had to say.

For a parent to qualify for job-protected leave under the FMLA to care for his or her son or daughter, the parent must:

  • Have worked for at least one year or 1250 hours over the last 12 months for the same employer
  • Have worked for a public agency or private company with at least 50 or more employees

These qualifications have not changed. The WHD division clarified the requirements related to an adult son or daughter that would allow a parent to take FMLA leave.