Wrongful Termination Settlement: Ravens pay Ray Rice $1.588 Million

While the details of the January 2015 settlement reached between the Ravens and their former star running back, Ray Rice, were undisclosed, sources indicate that the sides ended up settling for $1.588 million. The star running back was suing for back pay from his $3.529 million base salary for the 2014 season. The football player received a total of $26.588 million on the contract that was signed into being in July of 2012. (This included his $15 million bonus for signing).

Ray Rice’s $35 million contract was abruptly cancelled in September 2014 after graphic video coverage of a domestic violence incident surfaced online. Rice filed a grievance in October 2014.

After reaching a settlement with Rice, the Ravens released a statement regarding the situation indicating that the resolution was intended to put an end to the grievance with the former star running back and that they wanted to put it all behind them and move forward. They also made sure to “wish Janay and Ray Rice the best.”

Rice was a three-time Pro Bowl selection. Since the incident, Rice has been reinstated from his indefinite league suspension (that began in November of 2014). He hasn’t worked out for or even visited an NFL team since the problems began, but he hopes for a second chance at the game and works out regularly on his own in preparation for that opportunity.

For more information about southern California employment laws and how to fight wrongful termination, contact the southern California employment law experts at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik.

Wrongful Termination: Former Torrington Teacher Continues Fighting Termination

Giulio Romano, a former Torrington High School teacher of Latin and Italian, sued the Torrington School District for wrongful termination in 2013. The case has come to a halt, but may not be over as Romano vows to keep fighting the “wrongful termination.”

Romano is an Italian native, but was living in Houston, Texas prior to accepting the position offered by the Torrington Board of Education. When he accepted the position, he moved across the country. He began teaching at the beginning of the 2012-13 school year and was fired in February 2013 after only 6 months on the job. Documentation of the case indicates that the school district fired Romano because he used inappropriate language during the course of his teaching and offended several students. 20 of the 60 students signed up for his class dropped the course. When Torrington High School Principal, Joanne Creedon, requested a letter explaining his conduct, Romano failed to comply. The school district also indicated in case documentation that the plaintiff failed to obtain his Connecticut State Teacher Certification.

Romano claims that the school should have expected delays in obtaining his teacher certification as he was educated outside of the country. He also claims that the school district broke an implied contract when he was terminated from the teaching position because they had agreed to assist him in obtaining the necessary certification.

After the case was dismissed in Litchfield Superior Court, Romano filed an appeal. On March 5^th, 2015, the court upheld the dismissal. After the 2^nd decision for dismissal, Romano still intends to pursue the suit against the Torrington School District, vowing that the case will be heard in a court of law. He insists that the case was dismissed due to a technicality regarding the proper informing of necessary parties of the intention to file a lawsuit. When Romano originally filed suit, he notified the Torrington Superintendant, Cheryl Kloczko, but he did not notify the city clerk (which is required if the party being sued includes a board).

In an attempt to remedy the situation, Romano is considering re-filing the lawsuit and notifying the necessary parties as required.

For additional information on wrongful termination or to determine if employment law applies to your recent termination, contact the southern California employment law experts at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik.

Disability Discrimination Lawsuit Filed by School Teacher Diagnosed with Breast Cancer

In Swanson v. Morongo Unified School Dist., 2014 WL 7399317 (Cal. Ct. App. 2014), Lauralyn Swanson, schoolteacher for the Yucca Valley Elementary School, sued for discrimination based on medical condition. Swanson claims that after she was diagnosed with breast cancer and had a mastectomy the district’s board of education voted against renewing Swanson’s teaching contract. She alleged a denial of reasonable accommodation and a refusal to engage in the interactive process.

While the trial court initially granted the Morongo Unified School District’s motion for summary judgment, the decision was reversed by the Court of Appeal, holding that there were triable issues of fact regarding claims made by Swanson in the suit. Specific triable issues of fact included evidence that after Swanson provided the school district with information regarding her condition and took a medical leave in order to receive proper medical treatment, the district put in place a course of conduct that was specifically designed to set Swanson up to fail with difficult assignments and a lack of appropriate resources. When she failed to successfully fulfill the impossible requirements, the district later used Swanson’s performance as an excuse for their decision not to renew her teaching contract. 

The Court also decided that the school district failed to meet its burden to negate an essential element of Swanson’s failure to accommodate claim. They didn’t present appropriate evidence exhibiting that a second grade position was not available or proof that it was not a reasonable accommodation/that the alternate positions offered to Swanson were reasonable allowing her to perform the necessary job functions to succeed. It was also held that the district failed to provide any proof that they engaged in appropriate dialogue with Swanson as required by the Fair Employment and Housing Act.

If you would like to discuss workplace discrimination based on medical condition, please get in touch immediately. Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik are the southern California employment law experts and can help you reach a resolution. 

Worker Misclassified as Independent Contractors Sues Google

Jacob McPherson, former Google Play unit site merchandiser out of New York, sued Google and the online staffing company Elance-oDesk. He alleges that he and others in similar positions were misclassified as independent contractors by the online search engine giant. He is demanding unpaid wages, including wages that should have been paid for overtime hours. He also seeks damages and attorneys’ fees.

The plaintiff, McPherson, worked for Google from January 2013 through December 2013 as contracted. McPherson claims that he (and many others) worked up to 45 hours/week, but that Google never provided them with payment for more than 30 hours/week. While at Google, McPherson worked through oDesk who released a statement regarding the lawsuit. In their statement about the overtime suit, oDesk stated that they were committed to operating in a “lawful and ethical manner.” They researched the claims and are confident that they have no merit.

McPherson was offered employment at $35/hour for a maximum of 15 hours per week (the maximum hours per week was later raised to 30 hours, according to the suit filed against Google). McPherson was required to register at oDesk in order to receive their employment offer and he would be considered a freelancer paid only through oDesk.

McPherson claims in the lawsuit that he performed work similar to that of (and alongside at the same offices as) W-2 employees. He was assigned to teams that included W-2 employees. He was required to be in attendance for mandatory meetings and training alongside W-2 employees. He was even issued a Google owned cell phone, tablet and laptop just like the W-2 employees of the massive online search engine giant. “Freelancers” were also required to use an email signature that designated them as representatives of Google and offering the office address, follow a Google-approved method for completing assigned tasks, adhere to dress codes and the Google blogging policies, etc.

This case could be a stepping-stone for others and could mean drastic changes for online staffing and freelance sites regarding the risk associated with managing independent contractors.

If you have questions regarding your employer/worker relationship and whether or not the classification of independent contractor is appropriate according to federal regulations, contact the southern California employment law experts at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik. 

Cannabis-based Pharmaceuticals Company Founder Files Suit for Wrongful Termination

Gary M. Cohen, a cannabis-based pharmaceuticals company founder, filed suit for wrongful termination against the company as well as its board of directors. The suit was filed in Hillsborough County, Florida in Circuit Court where Mr. Cohen made allegations that he was terminated after he pointed out a number of corporate wrongdoings and attempting to have CannaPharmaRX’s director and chairman of the board, Gary Herick, removed from his position with the company.

According to Cohen, his lawsuit serves as a derivative action because the cannabis-based pharmaceuticals company, CannaPharmaRX, was harmed as a result of the defendants’ corporate waste, mismanagement and breach of fiduciary duties to their investors. The suit was removed to U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. The suit also lists four board members as co-defendants: Gerald Crocker, James Smeeding, Matthew Sherwood, and Robert Liess.

A few examples of the allegations that Cohen is making against CannaPharmaRX include: tax fraud through assignment of personal expenses as business expenses, withholding FICA and social security taxes on employee payroll, failure to accede to demands made by the plaintiff for corporate accounting records, etc.

Cohen claims that as a result of his insistence on receiving the requested information and his insistence that they stop engaging in illegal activities, the board conspired to have him removed from his positions at CannaPharmaRX as well as “steal” his 2.25 million shares of stock in the company. He claims that his removal was retaliation and therefore qualifies as a violation of Florida’s Whistleblower Act, 448.102(3), Florida Statutes. 

To discuss the details of your own termination, or what qualifies as wrongful termination, please contact your southern California employment law experts at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik. 

Wrongful Termination, Defamation Case: Former Edmonds’ HR Chief Awarded $1M

Edmonds’ long-time HR chief, Debi Humann, filed suit claiming that the mayor wrongfully fired and defamed him after her scrutiny into the pay rate and number of hours worked by Mayor Mike Cooper’s executive assistant. A federal jury awarded the former Edmonds city HR chief over $1M.

Ms. Humann was the director of human resources for the city of Edmond for 12 years until she was fired by ex-mayor Cooper in September of 2011. Her suit against the mayor and the city of Edmond in 2013 claimed small town political corruption. The trial took place in U.S. District Court in Seattle in front of a 10-member jury. They agreed, after a three week trial, to award Ms. Humann $1,035,351 in damages upon concluding that her termination was in violation of public policy and in violation of the 1^st Amendment. They also concluded that the mayor was guilty of defamation of Ms. Humann to the media.

Consequently, she was awarded over $500,000 in back pay and future income as well as $500,000 for damage done to her reputation and distress due to defamation of her character.

Cases of wrongful termination are commonplace in today’s workplace. The complete number of employment law based suits has increased by 400% over the last 20 years. Of those lawsuits, over 40% are filed against employers who employ between 15 and 100 employees.

If you have questions or concerns about wrongful termination or defamation get in touch with the southern California employment law experts at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik as soon as possible. 

Creationist Fossil Hunter Sues University After He is Fired

Mark Armitage is a fossil hunter. He was also the manager of the California State University, Northridge’s (CSUN) biology department’s electron and confocal microscopy suite. But after making a discovery he dreamed of for years in May of 2012, he was fired. 

While digging in Montana, Armitage found one of the largest Triceratops horns ever discovered in the Hell Creek Formation, which is a legendary stack of fossil-bearing rocks said to date to the last days of the dinosaurs. He drove the discovery back home to Los Angeles, California, and put it under the microscope. His study revealed both fossilized bone and preserved layers of soft tissue. He was shocked. He published his findings in February of 2013 in Acta Histochemica, a journal of cell and tissue research. He was fired two weeks after publishing on his findings.

He is now in the middle of what many view as a long shot legal battle. His intentions? He wants his job back. He filed a wrongful termination suit claiming religious intolerance as motivation for his dismissal. Armitage is a young-Earth creationist. He also states that his findings of soft tissue in the fossil support his belief that his Triceratops horn and other similar specimens date to the time of the “flood” referred to in the Holy Bible. An event he dates at about 4,000 years ago. Armitage claims that associates at the University could not stand working alongside a creationist who had his work published in a legitimate scientific journal. He feels this is the reason for his termination.  

Those in support of the University point out that religious intolerance claims in this case may have a hard time standing up if the case goes to trial. The associate vice-president of marketing and communications at CSUN stressed during an email communication that Armitage’s position at the university was “temporary.” Armitage also openly admits to engaging students in discussions frequently on topics related to his personal beliefs and the well-preserved cells in the Triceratops horn as proof that they’re young – no more than 68 million years old according to Armitage. US anti-discrimination laws require employers to accommodate employee religious beliefs and practices to a reasonable degree unless doing so causes the employer “undue hardship.”

In this particular instance, Armitage’s personal and/or religious views were such that the institution/employer’s goals were undermined when Armitage shared his thoughts and beliefs with various biology and/or paleontology students.

If you have been wrongfully terminated and you need expert advice on how to proceed, get in touch with the southern California employment law experts at Blumenthal, Nordrehaug & Bhowmik.