California Employment Legal Questions

If you were on probation it is highly unlikely that anything can be done UNLESS you are contending that your termination was unlawful because of discrimination (your membership in a legally protected class of persons based on age, sex, religion, race, etc.) or because you engaged in some other legally protected activity, i.e., complaining about what you believed to be unlawful acts including discrimination, complaining about pay issues, complaining about safety issues, etc. If none of these types of things apply in your situation then I am afraid Your union is correct and there would be no redress avaialble to you,.                                                Stephan Math Esq  ... Read Answer

Obviously you must furnish much more information than you've provided in order for any of us to be able to properly respond. 1. How long were you employed at this employer? 2. What was your position? 3. Why did you resign? (By the way in the future never resign because you feel you were wrongfully treated or unlawfully treated without first talking to a lawyer) 4. Please furnish a copy of the severance agreement. 5. Prior to your resigning did you make any complaints? If so, were they in writing? 6. Prior to your resigning were you subjected to any adverse employment actions? 7. Do you believe you were subjected to a hostile work environment? If so, please explain. Once you have responded to these questions we will be in a much better position to answer your questions.                                                           Stephan Math Esq., smesq1@aol.com              ... Read Answer

I would want to know a bit more....is your boss male and his fiancee female? What is your gender?...Disparate treatment on the basis of sex is unlawful under both the California Fair Employment and Housing Act and Title VII of the U.S. Code....the issue that may be presented in the case you've described is whether and to what extent there have been any damages as a result of the behavior you describe and if so, what are they and are they quantifiable in terms of dollars and cents......if you care to discuss the matter further feel free to contact us........Stephan Math Esq., smesq1@ aol.com, (805)300-2097... Read Answer

Question: You dont state if you believe there is a particular reason as to why you haven't been placed in the proper classification...i.e., is race, age, sex, etc. involved? Also you state that employer has refused to acknowledge....to whom did you complain? Do you have any responses or complaints in writing? What do you calculate the difference in pay to be? Have you filed a grievance?......Stephan Math Esq, smesq1@aol.com... Read Answer

In California your right to receive copies and to be able to review your personnel file is set forth in Labor Code Sect. 1198.5 a portion of which is reproduced for your review below, due to space limitations only a portion has bee reproduced, I suggest you review the entire code section...Stephan Math Esq. 1198.5. (a) Every current and former employee, or his or her representative, has the right to inspect and receive a copy of the personnel records that the employer maintains relating to the employee's performance or to any grievance concerning the employee. (b) (1) The employer shall make the contents of those personnel records available for inspection to the current or former employee, or his or her representative, at reasonable intervals and at reasonable times, but not later than 30 calendar days from the date the employer receives a written request, unless the current or former employee, or his or her representative, and the employer agree in writing to a date beyond 30 calendar days to inspect the records, and the agreed-upon date does not exceed 35 calendar days from the employer's receipt of the written request. ... Read Answer

Regardless of who was at fault for the injury, your friend would be entitled to file a workers compensation claim given that the injury occurred within the course and scope of employment.   As far as harassment and or possible termination, it is unlawful for an employer to retaliate against an employee for having filed a workers compensation claim and/or because of a disability or medical condition regardless of how the injury occurred. If your friend is concerned that he or she may be terminated I would advise him or her to file a complaint of discrimination with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. If you require or would like further informatio please let me know. Stephan Math Esq, smesq1@aol.com... Read Answer

Very sorry to hear about your unfortunate experience. Before anyone can advise you further it will be necessary for you to furnish additional facts and/or documentation. First, you may not know the answer to this but do you know if the company you worked for was acquired by another company in its entirety or did the new company merely acquire the assets of your former employer? Were you furnished any notifications by either company concerning this acquisiton? Did your former employer have any employment policies in effect such as a handbook? Prior to becoming employed overseas were you required to sign any documents? What was your understanding of pension benefits you were to receive and what was that understanding based on? What is your age and do you have any idea as to whether other younger employees who were similarly situated as you with respect to their positions were retained? It would be helpful at least initially if you would answer these preliminary questions and furnish any of the documents you have in connection with this matter including any of those referred to above. You may forward this information to our email address appearing at the end of this response. Stephan Math Esq, smesq1@aol.com    ... Read Answer

How long is your probationary period? Have you requested that you be assigned a new monitor? Have you made any complaint to the Board concerning this monitor? If you have complained have you received any responses in writing? Have any of your complaints been in writing? If there are writings and you have copies it would be helpful to see them. Upon receiving your responses we will be in a better position to evaluate your matter. I tend to agree that the number of drug tests appear to be punitive...Stephan Math Esq, smesq1@aol.com... Read Answer

of course you're entitled to be paid for that time...whether or not your officially on the clock so long as you're expending time on behalf of your employer and you are an hourly non exempt employee you are entitled to be paid for that time...I suggest one of two courses of action 1. Inform your employer in writing that henceforth you will be submitting all such time as time worked and expect to be paid for it ( you could go back 3 years if you could reconstruct that time 2. The other course of action would be to contact the Labor commissioner's office and file a complaint...by the way, with respect to the first option i would include a statement of intent to confer with the Labor Commissioner's office in the event you are unable to resolve the issue...understand that every employer has the power to retaliate and it is possible that you may suffer consequences but in my opinion if that occurred it would be unlawful and entitle you to claim wrongful discharge...Stephan Math Esq... Read Answer

It depends on the nature of the sale to company B...if Company B bought the corporation then in legal theory there is no difference because the corporate entity hasn't changed. All that would have changed in that case would be the shareholder owners and under this scenario Company B would have as complete access to all of Company A's assets and files as Company A did.. On the other hand if the sale by A to B was just for the assets of A then it would depend on what assets were sold.......my best guess would be that if B intended to carry on the business of A, the sale, no matter what form it took probably provided for the conveyance of all books records and files which would have included personnel files..;.Stephan Math Esq.... Read Answer

The simple answer to your question is, yes, however, as in most things legal such things are not always that simple. My advice to you is to document the tardiness, provide the employee with a verbal, then a written warning prior to termination. This definitely the case if you have an employee handbook in effect or written policies, if you don't then you should consider doing so. When it comes to employee issues it is imperative that you document these issues in writing and have the employee acknowledge receipt by signing for it..Stephan Math Esq.... Read Answer

Your question regarding Privacy...there are employee privacy rights in California and of course when it comes to health and medical information there is HIPAA. You indicate that you voluntarily left your employment and that can be problematic depending on the facts which put you in a position where you felt you absolutely had to do that. Therefore, although the facts may be embarrasing to you it is imperative that you apprise us of all of the facts leading up to your decision so that we can properly evaluate your case. If you prefer you can forward that information directly to us at smesq1@aol.com..........Stephan Math Esq.... Read Answer

Yes, an attorney can negotiate an out-of-court settlement, including a severance agreement, without filing with the EEOC or other agencies. However, it might be necessary to also file a complaint with an agency to preserve your claims against a statute of limitations. You should talk about your situation with?a local attorney?who specializes in wrongful termination cases.... Read Answer

I would have a question with respect to whether you had left a prior employment to take this posit9ion? Further, I believe that if you appealed EDD's determination, assuming they made one, that you were disqualified from receiving benefits, you should appeal that decision and I believe that if you could demonstrate to the judge that the employment was misrepresented to you and when the true nature of the job was revealed which required you to move outside of the state became known you had no alternative due to familial circumstances but to resign. That all of these facts were outside of your control. With respect to whether you left a prior employment, this issue may be important due to a labor code section in California which makes it unlawful for an employer to misrepresent the facts of a prospective employment in order to induce a prospective employee to move within or without the state.....don't know if your facts would come within the purview of that statute but its worth looking into., One other issue comes to mind. There may be a possible claim for negligent misrepresentation if in fact you could demonstrate that the employer knew or should have known that there was a possibility of a change in location of the job.  If you care to discuss further...smesq1@aol.com, Law Offices of Stephan Math    ... Read Answer

The issue as I see it is not whether you had consensual sex with your boss in the past but whether in the present you've made it absolutely clear to him that his advances are not welcome. Will the fact that you had consensual sex with him previously render your case more difficult? Probably. However, if you can demonstrate by evidence that you have clearly rejected any sexual advances after your initial relationship ended and that as a result you suffered adversely then you may have a case. How do you obtain that evidence? My advice to you is that you must put these things in writing. In other words I would send a memo informing him that his current advances are unwelcome and that you consider his conduct to be harassing and request that it cease. Furthermore, I would recap to him that you have asked that he take action against a co-employee who has been bullying you and you are concerned that his failure to take such action is due to your having rejected his advances. Advise him that you believe his conduct to be in violation of company rules and therefore you are requesting once again that he take action to curtail the bullying acts of this particular employee.   Is it possible if you do this you will be subject to adverse action? Yes. However, it seems to me you have little alternative and be aware that should he terminate you once you have made such a complaint in writing..that too would be actionable as retaliation........Stephan Math, Atty... Read Answer

In theory, you can sue based upon breach of a verbal contract. In your case, it sounds like your lawsuit would be a real long shot. He can correctly claim that he did everything he promised to do (he just did not do it as quickly or as well as you imagined he would). Moreover, the cost and delay of the lawsuit could be fatal to a new business like yours.Being a lender and an employee to the LLC does not create a conflict of interest. He could possibly sue you for breach of contract because you have not made him a member of the LLC, as you promised to do. He can claim the value of 40% of the business. What do you want to accomplish? Do you want to him to provide his services in the future? If so, put it in writing this time. Offer to add him to the LLC membership, but make it conditional on his continuing to provide services. Do you want to buy him out? If so, make him an offer to pay back a portion of his financial contribution.... Read Answer

Under WC, all medical treatment necessary because of the injury has to be paid for by your employer, until you deny. You can not sue for pain and suffering. That is the trade off for the fact that the employer does not have to be at fault for liability to exist. In many slip and fall cases at work, no one is really at fault.... Read Answer

It sounds like you probably have a case against your employer for disability discrimination. These cases tend to be complicated, so it is wise to have a lawyer to help you. You should contact a local lawyer who specializes in wrongful termination and discrimination cases, so you can discuss the details of your situation with him or her.... Read Answer

It sounds like you may have case for disability discrimination. If you had a disability, your employer should have given you a reasonable accommodation, such as giving you 2 more weeks of time off. You may have a case for age discrimination as well, if you are over 40. In California, age discrimination lawsuits only apply if the employee is over the age of 40.... Read Answer