California Employment Law Notes

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MacDonald v. State of Cal., 2013 WL 4522792 (Cal. Ct. App. 2013)

Aaron MacDonald worked for the State of California and the California State Assembly and was fired shortly after complaining that one of his supervisors was “illegally and/or inappropriately smoking” at the office. In response, MacDonald sued for retaliatory discharge in violation of Labor Code § 1102.5 and retaliatory and discriminatory discharge in…

Beaumont-Jacques v. Farmers Group, Inc., 217 Cal. App. 4th 1138 (2013)

Erin Beaumont-Jacques worked as a district manager for various insurance companies pursuant to a District Manager Appointment Agreement. After Beaumont-Jacques voluntarily terminated the relationship, she sued for breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and faith dealing, sex discrimination and violation of Business and Professions Code § 17200 (all…

Williams v. Chino Valley Indep. Fire Dist., 218 Cal. App. 4th 73 (2013)

Loring Winn Williams sued the Fire District for disability discrimination under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act. The Fire District succeeded in getting the case dismissed on summary judgment – after filing a successful petition for writ of mandate when the motion was initially denied. The Fire District subsequently…

Acuna v. San Diego Gas & Elec. Co., 217 Cal. App. 4th 1402 (2013)

Esperanza Acuna filed three separate complaints against her employer (San Diego Gas & Electric) with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing (“DFEH”): One in March 2006 for racial discrimination and harassment and retaliation for filing a workers’ compensation claim; one in February 2007 for disability discrimination; and one in…

Purton v. Marriott Int’l, Inc., 218 Cal. App. 4th 499 (2013)

In December 2009, the Marriott Del Mar Hotel held its annual holiday party as a “thank you” to its employees and management. Marriott did not require its employees to attend the party. Michael Landri was employed as a bartender at the hotel. Landri, who did not work on the day of the party,…

Avidor v. Sutter’s Place, Inc., 212 Cal. App. 4th 1439 (2013)

Haim Avidor is the lead plaintiff in this putative class of current and former card dealers employed by Sutter’s Place, a cardroom/casino located in San Jose (“Bay 101”). Bay 101 required its dealers to contribute a set amount of the gratuities they received from players to a common account, which was distributed to other…

Wang v. Chinese Daily News, 2013 WL 781715 (9th Cir. 2013)

Plaintiffs (reporters for the Chinese Daily News) alleged they were non-exempt employees entitled to overtime pay under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and California state law. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of the reporters, finding journalists are not subject to the creative professional exemption to the FLSA or California…

Rodriguez v. Oto, 212 Cal. App. 4th 1020 (2013)

Heriberto Ceja Rodriguez sued Takeshi Oto for injuries he sustained in an automobile accident. Unbeknownst to Rodriguez, at the time of the accident, Oto was driving from an event related to his employment. (Oto was driving a car he rented from Hertz, the cost of which was reimbursed to him by his employer.) Seven months after…

McVeigh v. Recology San Francisco, 213 Cal. App. 4th 443 (2013)

Brian McVeigh, a former Operations Supervisor for Recology, alleged Recology fired him in retaliation for his reporting possible fraud in connection with California Redemption Value payments made by and to Recology for recycled materials. McVeigh asserted claims under the California False Claims Act and Labor Code § 1102.5. The trial court granted summary judgment…

McGrory v. Applied Signal Tech., 212 Cal. App. 4th 1510 (2013)

John McGrory alleged his employment was terminated because he is male and because he participated in his employer’s internal investigation. He also alleged defamation associated with a statement the vice president of human resources made to another employee about why McGrory had been terminated. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the…