Orange County Employment Lawyers Blog

BLM Spurs Companies to Disavow Racial Discrimination, Critics Note Lacking Diversity

June 25, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

The death of George Floyd in Minneapolis last month sparked a global outcry over policing practices and a notable shift in the conversation over the Black Lives Matter movement. It also set off an avalanche of response from corporate America, which rushed to express solidarity with the black community, some promising billions of dollars collectively to advance the causes of racial equality and justice. Public reaction to this has been mixed, in part because it’s unprecedented; companies have been largely silent on this issue before now, despite the fact that it’s not a new one (as those of us in Los Angeles well know). But the other skepticism stems from the fact that many firms don’t appear to be as vigilant on equity and diversity within their own ranks.

Social justice advocates point out that racial disparities go far beyond policing and are calling on these companies to closely examine their hiring and promotion practices for possible racial bias.

As our Los Angeles racial discrimination lawyers can explain, lots of companies have committed to diversity in years past, some on their own and some because a court ordered them to do so. But in many corporations, there remains significant unchecked structural bias for people of color and also women. Continue Reading ›

Pay Secrecy in California: Understanding Your Employee Rights

June 17, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

A prominent, national law firm is facing a growing number of lawsuits pertaining to its secretive compensation system that former attorneys say hides systematic pay discrimination against women. Some of those include claims, filed in 2018, included plaintiffs who worked for the firm in California, as the ABA Journal reported.

In that case, the lawsuit alleges there was an enforced “code of silence” with regard to pay and productivity wherein partners kept compensation information confidential. That left female attorneys out in the cold, unable to discover or attempt to equalize their pay. Guidelines at the firm were reportedly changed to discourage – but not outright forbid – discussions of pay among partners and employees.

Recently, a U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia denied the law firm’s motion to dismiss these lawsuit, though the court did dismiss several of the pregnancy discrimination claims. Continue Reading ›

Civil Rights Law Protects LGBT Workers From Job Discrimination, SCOTUS Rules

June 15, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

In a landmark civil rights case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled today that existing law protects gay, lesbian and transgender workers from workplace discrimination – a huge win for LGBT equality that The New York Times characterized as “stunning.”

As our Orange County employment lawyers can explain, the question in this case was whether the provision of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 barring discrimination on the basis of sex extends to lesbian, gay and transgender workers. In a 6-3 vote, justices ruled that it does. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the 172-page majority opinion, which was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan. This has the potential to benefit millions of gay and transgender workers.

While previous LGBT rights cases in recent years have been concerned with constitutional law, this new ruling, which covers two sets of cases – Bostock v. Clayton County and Stephens v. R.G. and G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc. – is concerned primarily with statutory interpretation. The first were two lawsuits filed by gay men who alleged they were terminated from their jobs because they are gay. The second was a lawsuit filed from a transgender woman who allege

Examining the Trend of Delivery Driver Overtime Lawsuits

June 10, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

Delivery drivers across the country have been filing lawsuits in recent years demanding they have been cheated out of overtime and other benefits. As our L.A. overtime lawyers know, delivery service drivers are too frequently victims of wage theft. This can come in numerous forms, including:

Not being paid their full, earned wages.
Not properly reimbursed for car expenses when they own the vehicle they drive.
Improperly categorized as a contractor when they are an employee.

Sometimes workers in this industry are paid daily rates for a certain number of hours when in reality, their work takes longer than the hours they’ve formally logged. Continue Reading ›

L.A. Sexual Harassment Lawsuit Filed Against Criminal Minds Producers, Studios, Execs

June 3, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

The studios, producers and executives from the show Criminal Minds are facing an L.A. sexual harassment lawsuit from the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. The complaint alleges that a director of photography for the show (which ended earlier this year after 15 seasons) engaged in repeated instances of sexual harassment which went unchecked by the defendants. The director was personally sued last year by a cameraman for sexual harassment. Now, the state is pursuing claims against CBS, ABC and Disney, claiming that not only was the director’s conduct not addressed, but anyone who “resisted or tacitly evaded” his abuse or advances.

Among the claims laid out in the L.A. sexual harassment lawsuit:

A technician was fired after he resisted a butt slap and reported it.
A video playback department worker corroborated the technician’s claims – and was subsequently fired.
More than a dozen men were fired at the photography director’s request.

California Employee Misclassification at Issue in State’s Uber, Lyft Lawsuit

May 28, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

The State of California is suing the nation’s two biggest ride-share companies, asserting violations of a new state law against employee misclassification.

As our Los Angeles employee misclassification attorneys can explain, at issue is the fact that the firms are treating their workers as if they are independent contractors as opposed to employees. The state attorney general’s office filed the lawsuit, and is joined by several other city attorneys, including Los Angeles.

The law is California Assembly Bill 5, known as AB5 for short or “the gig worker law.” It was passed last fall and went into effect Jan. 1st. Continue Reading ›

U.S. Supreme Court Weighs California Catholic School Disability Discrimination Case

May 21, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

Three years ago, a young woman using a wheelchair asked Pope Francis why some who are disabled aren’t able to receive Communion or go Mass. The Pope responded that discriminating against those with disabilities is “one of the ugliest things” one can do.

This month, the U.S Supreme Court heard oral arguments via telephone regarding an employment disability claim filed by a former teacher at a Catholic school in California who said her employer declined to renew her contract after she informed them she’d need more time off for cancer treatment.

The employee died after a 5-year breast cancer battle. However, the disability discrimination claim against her former Catholic school employer in Torrance is moving forward. The trial court had sided with the school, which claimed it could not be sued for disability discrimination because of the ministerial exception. Continue Reading ›

Los Angeles Employment Attorneys Predict Surge in Worker Lawsuits After Pandemic

May 15, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

Unemployment has been soaring in California and throughout the country in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even as employees return to work, there have been numerous concerns raised about work safety, discrimination during layoffs and wage and hour disputes. Our Los Angeles employment attorneys predict a significant uptick in worker lawsuits against employers who violated their rights or treated them unfairly.

Several class actions are currently pending against government employers, salons and manufacturers, and it’s expected there will be more of these also. So far, most class action litigation to arise from the pandemic has come from the consumers, many of whom have been fighting for refunds or accusing some companies of price gouging. Ultimately though, employment litigation will likely surpass this. Continue Reading ›

California Employment Lawsuit Plaintiffs Face Punitive Damage Skepticism in Court

May 8, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

California has always had one of the most robust system of protections for employee rights in the country. However, two recent state appellate court rulings may not bode well for punitive damages in future cases.

As our Los Angeles employment lawyers can explain, there are two types of damages in civil cases like these: Compensatory and punitive.

Compensatory damages are those that compensate a plaintiff for losses. They fall into two basic categories: Economic (medical bills, lost wages, loss of earning potential, loss of benefits, retirement, etc.) and non-economic (pain and suffering, etc.). Punitive damages, on the other hand, punish the defendant for wrongful conduct and hopefully discourage others from engaging in the same kind of behavior in the future. Continue Reading ›

L.A. Employment Lawyers Outline Worker Rights During the Pandemic

May 4, 2020 | by Nassiri Law

Sweeping closures of California businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic left millions of Californians unemployed. Now, as the curve of coronavirus cases has flattened and state officials have announced measures that will allow more businesses to reopen, Los Angeles employment lawyers have been receiving questions about what rights workers have in returning.

These include questions about what personal protective equipment employers are required to provide, what to do if they don’t feel safe returning and what to know if their employer retaliates for reporting unsafe conditions.

Safety First – COVID-19 Protection at Work

All California employers are required to provide a reasonably safe workplace. As outlined in Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers have a general duty to provide every worker with a place of employment that is free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious harm. Continue Reading ›