California Employment Law Notes

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Peralta v. Hispanic Business, Inc., 419 F.3d 1064 (9th Cir. 2005)

Carmen Peralta worked as a special events manager for Hispanic Business, Inc. (HBI). Between January 1, 1999 and July 2000, HBI provided a long-term disability (LTD) insurance policy to its employees, including Peralta. In July 2000, HBI cancelled the LTD policy; in October 2000, Peralta was injured in an automobile accident in which…

People v. Jiang, 131 Cal. App. 4th 1027 (2005)

Weibin Jiang was arrested and charged with committing sexual offenses against an acquaintance. While he was out on bail, Jiang prepared numerous password-protected documents for his attorneys, which he saved in a folder labeled “Attorney” on his employer-issued laptop computer. The prosecutor obtained the documents by subpoenaing them from the employer (Cadence Design Systems) and…

Reynolds v. Bement, 36 Cal. 4th 1075 (2005)

Steven Reynolds, a former manager for Earl Scheib Inc., brought this class-action lawsuit against the individual shop managers and assistant shop managers of Earl Scheib, an automobile painting business. Reynolds alleged that defendants misclassified him and other employees as exempt employees, thus depriving them of statutory overtime compensation. The managers demurred to the complaint on the…

Pinero v. Specialty Restaurants Corp., 130 Cal. App. 4th 635 (2005)

Alberto Pinero, the former General Manager of the Castaways Restaurant (owned by Specialty Restaurants Corporation (SRC)), sued SRC for retaliation in violation of the Fair Employment and Housing Act that allegedly resulted from Pinero’s filing an age discrimination lawsuit against his former employer and a member of the Monterey Park City Council, Alfred…

Head v. Glacier Northwest, Inc., 413 F.3d 1053 (9th Cir. 2005)

Matthew Head, a barge offloader, sued his former employer, Glacier Northwest, Inc., for discrimination in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Oregon state law. Glacier contended it terminated Head because he had damaged one of its loaders when it got stuck in the mud. At trial, the jury was instructed…

Coghlan v. American Seafoods Co., 413 F.3d 1090 (9th Cir. 2005)

James Coghlan, a commercial fisherman, was employed by American Seafoods Company (ASC). In 1998, following a layoff, Coghlan retained his job as a master of one of ASC’s fishing trawlers. The person who was responsible for retaining Coghlan was Inge Andreassen, ASC’s Vice President of Operations, who was a man of Norwegian birth.…

Tellis v. Alaska Airlines, Inc., 414 F.3d 1045 (9th Cir. 2005)

H. Charles Tellis was terminated from his job as an Alaska Airlines maintenance mechanic when he took an unexcused leave of absence from work to fly from Seattle to Atlanta in order to retrieve one of the family’s automobiles, which he then drove back to Seattle. Tellis contended that his trip to Atlanta…

People v. Pacific Landmark, LLC, 129 Cal. App. 4th 1203 (2005)

The City of Los Angeles brought a red-light abatement action against the operators of a business and the owners of a strip mall where the business (an illegal massage parlor) was located. The trial court issued a preliminary injunction prohibiting the operation of a massage parlor or house of prostitution. Ron Mavaddat contended…

Gieg v. DRR, Inc., 407 F.3d 1038 (9th Cir. 2005)

Plaintiffs in this case are finance and insurance managers of retail automobile dealerships who claimed they were entitled to overtime under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act. The employers contended the managers were exempt from overtime on the ground that at least half their compensation was derived from commissions. The managers received commissions based…

Fontani v. Wells Fargo Investments, LLC, 129 Cal. App. 4th 719 (2005)

Wells Fargo terminated Marco Fontani, one of its NASDregistered broker-dealers. Following Fontani’s termination, Wells Fargo filed a Form U-5 with the NASD, stating that Fontani had been terminated “for violation of company policies by misrepresenting information in the sale of annuities, not being properly registered and firm procedures regarding annuity applications.” Fontani…