Tag: Wrongful termination claim

CALIFORNIA NANNY MAKES SERIOUS CLAIMS AGAINST EMPLOYER

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On behalf of Robin Perkins of Perkins Asbill, A Professional Law Corporation posted in Wrongful Termination on Friday, July 11, 2014.

Imagine working at job in which you weren’t allowed to take breaks for days at a time. Now, imagine that you have a medical condition that makes it difficult to keep to a schedule like that. Those are the claims that a 64-year-old woman is making against a California couple for whom she was employed.

The woman has been nicknamed the “nightmare nanny” by the media because she is refusing to leave the home of the family. She asserts that she was being exploited by the couple because she was forced to watch the couple’s three children for days on end without taking breaks.

She says that she has taken two days off because of being sick with chronic pulmonary disease, but that the rest of the days she has been employed, she has been watching the children, washing dishes and doing chores.

The nanny was hired by the family in March to care for the children and help around the house in exchange for room and board. The couple says that she stopped doing her job within weeks of being hired, but that she refuses to move out of their home.

It has been reported that the woman threatened to file a wrongful termination claimand sue for elder abuse. Despite that, they started the process to evict the nanny from their home through the court system.

Only time will tell how this situation is ultimately resolved. If this is a case of wrongful termination because of the woman’s medical condition or any other reason, the nanny might opt to follow through on the threat to sue. Those who are facing a similar situation in which they were terminated wrongfully might decide to do the same thing.

Source: Reuters, “California so-called ‘nightmare nanny’ says was exploited by family,” July 1, 2014

WRONGFUL TERMINATION CLAIM FILED BY CALIFORNIA WOMAN

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On behalf of Robin Perkins of Perkins Asbill, A Professional Law Corporation posted in Wrongful Termination on Friday, June 20, 2014.

A worker for the Crestline Sanitation District has filed a lawsuit that claims she was wrongfully terminated from her position. The woman was hired by the district in October of 2012. She was promoted to a position on July 1 of the following year that had a six-month probationary period.

She alleges that she was let go because of a deposit that never made it to the bank. She says that a few weeks after she was promoted, she gave the general manager a bank deposit of $215.70. When she reconciled the books at the end of the month, the deposit wasn’t there.

She says that the general manager whom she gave the deposit to called her into his office a month later to question her about the missing deposit. She says that she told him she didn’t set it down. She says that he had memory problems and that he likely misplaced the missing deposit after she gave it to him.

The problems she was having increased in August of 2013 when she became stricken with medical problems seemingly from black mold in the district office. She was accused of contacting California Occupational Safety and Health Administration but denies having alerted them to the mold. She says she was then terminated on Sept. 16, 2013 for poor work performance.

The woman says no written notifications were made. She says that she was simply verbally told that she made too many mistakes.

This woman has opted to file a wrongful termination claim because she feels that she shouldn’t have been let go. Anyone who feels the same has a right to file a lawsuit pertaining to the wrongful termination.

Source: Alpenhorn News, “Sanitation district sued by ex-employee” Gail Fry, Jun. 19, 2014

WRONGFUL TERMINATION CLAIM MADE AFTER FIREFIGHTER FIRED

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On behalf of Robin Perkins of Perkins Asbill, A Professional Law Corporation posted in Wrongful Termination on Friday, June 6, 2014.

For people in some careers, actions away from work can have a profound impact on their jobs. A case that has been going on for more than three years that involves a California firefighter shows just how significant of an impact things that happen away from work can have on a job, even if no criminal convictions are associated with the actions.

The City of Redondo Beach is being sued by a firefighter who was allegedly wrongfully terminated after he admitted to groping women in a nightclub. The incidents happened on Jan. 8, 2011, at the Busby’s nightclub. The man groped four women who didn’t consent to his advances.

The interesting fact in this case is that the man was acquitted of the charges placed against him after his attorney argued that he was given the date rape drug against his knowledge. The acquittal came in March of 2012, but he was fired from his position as a firefighter on April 20 of the same year as an internal disciplinary measure.

He sued the fire department for wrongful termination. In December 2013, he won an arbitration hearing that enabled him to return to the fire department at a lower rank.

The wrongful termination claim names the former fire chief, city officials, and the city as defendants. The man is seeking more than $180,000 for lost wages and other damages caused by being removed from his position. The firefighter’s union is standing behind the man and his lawsuit.

This firefighter has opted to pursue legal remedies to compensate for damages he says he received when he was wrongfully terminated. Anyone who has been let go from a job for something similar can follow this man’s example.

Source: Easy Reader News, “Redondo firefighter, fired amidst sexual battery charges, sues City, officials” Alyssa Morin, Jun. 05, 2014

UTILITY WORKER GETS $1.3 MILLION FOR RETALIATORY DISCHARGE

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On behalf of Robin Perkins of Perkins Asbill, A Professional Law Corporation posted in Wrongful Termination on Friday, April 4, 2014.

A former utility worker has received $1.3 million in a California wrongful termination suit. The worker, who had been employed by SDG&E, claimed that he was a victim of retaliatory discharge after he revealed that the company was unfairly targeting households in the low-income category. Those clients were targeted because they provided additional money through fees related to delinquent bills.

News reports show that the man complained about the unfair practices. Lower-income populations in central San Diego were being targeted for the official delinquency notices, which can result in customers being charged $9 per notice. Those notices were hand-delivered only in low-income areas, according to courtroom documents.

The plaintiff in this case said he is pleased that the utility will be required to stop its discriminatory practices. He said that the wrongful termination claim was not simply because of the money; the man actually wanted to make a difference and blow the whistle on unethical activities. He said he is happy that the jury understood the implications of the utility company’s alleged misdeeds. It appears that SDG&E intends to appeal the decision, claiming that the man lost his job after failing to comply with corporate policies.

Workers who have the courage to pursue filing a complaint against illegal activity should not be subject to retaliatory discharge. Those victims may be entitled to financial compensation and other damages, which could even include getting their jobs back. A California employment attorney may be able to assist these individuals with civil cases against unscrupulous employers, allowing victims to pursue wrongful termination claims and other complaints. Workers should not have to suffer financial hardship because of the illegal and unethical actions of their employers.

Source: KFMB 760, “Ex-SDG&E employee awarded $2.1M in lawsuit” No author given, Mar. 26, 2014

ACQUITTED OFFICERS CLAIM DISCRIMINATION AFTER TERMINATION

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On behalf of Robin Perkins of Perkins Asbill, A Professional Law Corporation posted in Wrongful Termination on Friday, January 24, 2014.

Two police officers who were acquitted of criminal charges in a beating death may not get their jobs back. In total, three men were fired from a West Coast police department for the death. One of the men was not involved in the trial. Still, all three were dismissed from their former jobs. All three men had made appeals to be reinstated after they were fired. One man has also made an informal wrongful termination claim, though it does not appear that a civil case has been initiated.

City council members in the town have been threatened with recall if they reinstate the officers. Violent protests have even broken out because of the officers’ acquittal. The city council will provide the final decision in the employment matter. The officers have a right to consult an independent arbitrator. That entity will submit a report to the council for consideration.

The men may still face criminal charges from the Federal Bureau of Investigation for potential violation of the decedent’s constitutional rights. The men are accused of beating a homeless man to death in 2011. Statements from the department police chief indicate that the men were not fired because of the criminal proceedings. That man said he had used other criteria to terminate their employment. He also intends to ‘vigorously defend’ his decision.

Even though the men were acquitted in the case, they still lost their jobs. The police chief did not explain in detail why the department had a legitimate cause for termination. Employees should not be subject to discrimination simply because they were involved in a criminal trial. Those who have been acquitted in a criminal trial should enjoy employment protection. Qualified Florida employment attorneys may be able to help workers who think they were fired without a legitimate cause for termination.

Source: Daily Titan, “Police chief will not rehire officers involved in Kelly Thomas beating, council will make final decision in appeal” Samuel Mountjoy, Jan. 22, 2014

CALIFORNIA POWER WORKER WINS WRONGFUL TERMINATION CLAIM

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On behalf of Robin Perkins of Perkins Asbill, A Professional Law Corporation posted in Wrongful Termination on Tuesday, December 24, 2013.

A former energy company worker has received more than $1 million in a California claim for wrongful termination. The 44-year-old man, a former employee at PG&E, said he was fired after making complaints about safety concerns on the job. Jurors in the case agreed that the company did not have a legitimate cause for termination of the man’s employment. The man received nearly $1.1 million in connection with lost wage claims, along with lost benefits allegations and those for emotional distress.

Official reports show that the man became concerned about on-the-job safety after he was ordered to take unsafe actions during an electrical pole repair in 2011. The man’s supervisor told the power line workers and his colleagues to repair the power lines without shutting off the electricity to the poles. However, the high-voltage wires nearly touched during the repair. Had that occurred, a massive explosion could have occurred.

Even though no one was hurt in the incident, it could have been considered a safety near-miss. Further, another PG&E crew had opted out of doing the work because they found it too dangerous. The man also alleged that another crew was permitted to shut down the electricity on the very same line when they did maintenance just weeks later.

As a result, the man filed a safety claim with the company, and he told officials that he felt unsafe on the job after that time. Understandably, the man was afraid to go to work, suffering from panic attacks and even crippling anxiety. The man was given a month-long hiatus from work, but he was fired when he refused to come in during his off time to discuss his absence.

The utility company plans to appeal the judgment.

Workers in high-risk positions – such as utility line workers – deserve to feel safe at work. This employee felt that his safety was not a concern to his supervisors, so he suffered a variety of ill effects, including losing his job. Victims of retaliatory discharge may be eligible to file a wrongful termination claim to recover damages, as the man did in this case. No California employees should be afraid of on-the-job injury.

Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel, “PG&E worker wins $1 million in Santa Cruz wrongful termination lawsuit” Stephen Baxter, Dec. 15, 2013

EMPLOYEE SUING CALIFORNIA HOSPITAL FOR WRONGFUL TERMINATION

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On behalf of Robin Perkins of Perkins Asbill, A Professional Law Corporation posted in Wrongful Termination on Thursday, December 5, 2013.

A former employee at a California hospital is seeking financial compensation after she reportedly was fired for reporting sexual harassment. The woman filed the wrongful termination claim after she was dismissed from work at Lodi Memorial Hospital in April, according to news reports. The woman claims that she was a whistleblower in the emergency room, and she was fired because she dared to stand up to the physician to harassed her.

The woman told officials that she was harassed by the emergency room medical director at the facility several times during 2012. She complained to hospital managers about the man’s misconduct, saying she was worried that patients might be suffering from harassment as well. Less than a month after she raised her concerns, the woman was fired by hospital higher-ups, according to the wrongful termination suit. The physician who was accused of harassing the woman and several other employees no longer works for the hospital.

So far, the woman has already won at least one legal victory against the hospital, which accused her of violating the organization’s confidentiality agreement. The woman was reportedly denied unemployment benefits after the retaliatory discharge because of those allegations; the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board overturned that decision, explaining that the woman followed the hospital’s procedures.

The woman argues that the hospital is guilty of violations of state or federal law in connection with the incidents. She is seeking compensation for patient safety whistleblowing, sexual harassment, wrongful termination and other civil claims. No one deserves to be harassed in the workplace, and victims of sexual harassment certainly should not be fired because they bring the problems to light. In this case and many others, attorneys say that additional victims may come forward after the initial complaint is filed; indeed, this could be just the beginning of the hospital’s legal woes in connection with the sexual harassment incident.

Source: 
www.lodinews.com, “Former employee sues Lodi Memorial Hospital” Kristopher Anderson, Nov. 26, 2013