California Employment Law Notes

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Patten v. Grant Joint Union High School Dist., 134 Cal. App. 4th 1378 (2005)

Colleen Patten, a junior high school principal, “blew the whistle” concerning four “legal violations” that she believed had occurred at her school. After she complained, Patten was notified that she was being transferred to a smaller junior high school for the 2002-03 academic year. Patten’s illness with mononucleosis initially prevented…

Hope v. California Youth Authority, 134 Cal. App. 4th 577 (2005)

Bruce Hope worked as a cook for the CYA for approximately five years during which time he was subjected to derogatory remarks on multiple occasions from his supervisor and others in the workplace based upon his sexual orientation. Although Hope complained to other supervisors and co-workers in the workplace about the harassment, it…

Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. v. WCAB, 134 Cal. App. 4th 1316 (2005)

After completing the business portion of a trip to Europe, John Moody extended his stay for additional sightseeing with his wife in Italy. Moody sought workers’ compensation coverage for severe injuries that he suffered in an automobile accident in which he was involved while driving from Rome to Düsseldorf. The workers’ compensation judge…

Caliber Bodyworks, Inc. v. Superior Court, 134 Cal. App. 4th 365 (2005)

Four former employees of Caliber Bodyworks filed a complaint for various wage-and-hour violations on behalf of themselves and as class representatives and for civil penalties for these violations. Caliber demurred to the entire complaint on the ground that plaintiffs had failed to allege they had satisfied the administrative prerequisites of the Labor…

Murphy v. Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc., 134 Cal. App. 4th 728 (2005)

Former store manager John Paul Murphy sued Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc. (KCP), a small, upscale retail clothing store, for violations of the wage and hour law, asserting that he was improperly classified as an exempt employee. After resigning his employment, Murphy filed a complaint with the Labor Commissioner. The Labor Commissioner awarded…

Greka Integrated, Inc. v. Lowrey, 133 Cal. App. 4th 1572 (2005)

Greka Integrated sued its former safety manager, Gary Lowrey, for breach of a non-disclosure agreement and conversion associated with Lowrey’s taking emails and other documents that belonged to the company and for disclosing those documents to third parties, including Greka’s competitors. Lowrey contended that he discovered many violations of worker safety and environmental…

Figueroa v. Northridge Hosp. Med. Ctr., 134 Cal. App. 4th 10 (2005)

One year after she filed suit against Northridge Hospital for discrimination and failure to accommodate her pregnancy, among other things, Raquel Figueroa requested leave to file an amended complaint to include class action claims for failure to pay wages and unfair business practices on behalf of all current and former nurses and…

MacIsaac v. Waste Mgmt. Collection & Recycling, Inc., 134 Cal. App. 4th 1076 (2005)

North Bay Disposal Corporation purchased from Empire Waste Management a contract to provide waste disposal services to the City of Santa Rosa. As part of the agreement, Empire Waste transferred to North Bay one mechanic and 41 garbage truck drivers who would drive the same routes for the City, use…

Doe 1 v. Superior Court (Roman Catholic Archbishop of Los Angeles), 132 Cal. App. 4th 1160 (2005)

Petitioners in this case, 26 Roman Catholic priests, filed this action to prevent the Los Angeles Archdiocese from publicly disclosing written summaries that were made of the personnel records of more than 100 priests who were accused of sexually molesting minors. The summaries were prepared for purposes…

County of San Luis Obispo v. WCAB, 133 Cal. App. 4th 641 (2005)

While working as a mental health therapist for the County of San Luis Obispo, Art Martinez sustained injuries to his neck, spine, wrist and shoulder when he was assaulted by a violent patient. When Martinez returned to work three years later, he was placed in a different job at a different…