Articles Posted in Public Policy Claims

In a partial victory for California workers, the State’s highest court ruled, in Salas v. Sierra Chemical Co. 59 Cal.4th 407 (2014) that employers cannot get away with violating California employment laws just because they find evidence, after being sued, that their mistreated employees did not have proper authorization to work in the United States.…

In Thursday’s unanimous Lane v. Franks decision, the Supreme Court decided that public employees are protected from retaliation when they testify in court about misconduct they observe on the job. Lane v. Franks, 134 S.Ct. 2369 (2014). Edward Lane was a director of a program for underprivileged youth operated by Central Alabama Community College (CACC).…

As Mr. Ventress learned the hard way – after three trips to the Ninth Circuit – it is tough to sue an airline for safety violations and/or termination for reporting safety violations. Mr. Ventress claimed he was retaliated against as a flight engineer because he reported safety concerns. The case took three trips to the…

The law is pretty well settled that a labor arbitration does not generally bar a unionized employee from bringing a claim under the Fair Employment and Housing Act, such as a discrimination, sexual harassment or retaliation claim. See Alexander v. Gardner-Denver (1974) 415 U.S. 36; Camargo v. California Portland Cement Co. (2001) 86 Cal.App.4th 995.…

Dr. Jadwin sued his employer, Kern County, in federal court, for placing him on administrative leave in retaliation for his complaints about patient care and other violations. This underlying federal case subsequently resulted in a verdict of over $500,000.00 to Dr. Jadwin. Instead of heeding the warning of being particularly careful not to retaliate, or…

Nicolas Tides and Matthew Neuman both worked for Boeing in the State of Washington and both were concerned that Boeing’s practices violated the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The two employees complained internally, on multiple occasions, that they believed the system in place at Boeing permitted unauthorized users to alter the company’s internal controls rating system. Tides and…

By now this ought to be the accepted and undisputed black letter law: in the State of California, nothing good can come of a non-compete clause. A non-compete clause is generally illegal and in violation of the public policy set forth in California Government Code Section 16600. The reasoning is simple: the public policy of…