Mesriani Law Group Successfully Settles Couple’s Whistle-Blowing Case, Nets $80K

 
LOS ANGELES - July 30, 2013 - PRLog -- The Mesriani Law Group (MLG), one of the top employment and labor law firms in Los Angeles, has once again proved its efficiency in delivering favorable and outstanding results to its clients after it recently settled an employment retaliation lawsuit and successfully secured $80,000.00 for two individuals.

According to case files, the two individuals are husband and wife who previously worked in an Arkansas-based property management company. While working there, they saw an ad online at an undisclosed website and responded to it by emailing their résumés. Shortly after, an individual responded to their posting and immediately offered them employment as she was looking for a couple who will manage her property, which is an apartment complex in Los Angeles. Before the couple’s arrival in California, the owner spoke with the wife about six times about the job.

The owner of the property informed the couple that they are required to be available on-call for emergencies, and to show vacancies to potential tenants on a limited work schedule. They were also advised to handle minor maintenance, but if such work involved more than 45 minutes to an hour, the owner would pay the couple $200.00 for every maintenance call they handled. The couple will also be paid monthly base wages of $1,400.00 each while living rent free in a 1-bedroom, 1-bathrooom apartment.

The couple accepted the job offer thinking that they will be working fewer hours and will have less day-to-day work. They arrived in Los Angeles and moved into their apartment unit on July 24, 2011. They began work the next day. The owner’s assistant provided them schedules setting forth various daily tasks, but they noticed that their actual duties differed greatly in time and scope from the duties described by the apartment owner before they accepted employment with the company.

Throughout the couple’s employment, only the husband received his $1,400.00 base wage, while his wife did not. While she continued to perform above and beyond the duties that she had originally agreed to, she continuously complained with management for its failure to pay her agreed upon wages throughout her employment, to no avail. Later on, the couple worked on the premises of the property from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. daily; sometimes having to remain at the building even in the evenings. They were also required to provide day-to-day maintenance as the maintenance team would only repair vacant units.

Additionally, the apartment owner only allowed the couple a budget of $1,000.00 for repairs to the property, which is not realistic given that a replacement of a single heater in the building would already cost them around $600.00. While the couple complied, they were forced to deny several repair requests from tenants. They subsequently complained to the apartment complex management that such practices would endanger the health and safety of the tenants because of unsafe conditions within the property.

On numerous occasions, the company instructed the couple to perform illegal acts. In October 2011, the owner made racial comments about the Hispanic residents of the property. She then instructed the couple, particularly the wife, to gather all files, including the Hispanic residents’ files and deliver them to one of the owners of the adjacent property. Said owner would review the files and obtain information in an attempt to evict Hispanic residents simply because of their race.

The couple knew that delivering private tenant information to a third party for the purpose of racial discrimination was illegal, each time refusing to give in to the illegal activity. One time in November of 2011, the owner requested the couple to provide her with all tenant files, including those from the Hispanic tenants. The wife reminded the owner of the illegal act, but the latter became enraged with her. Illegal acts during their employment went as far as asking the husband to place a camera in a tenant’s apartment so that the owner can observe the tenant at home, as well as perform flooring work without proper permits and licenses.

In autumn of 2011, the husband was injured when he fended off an assailant breaking into the property. He had to undergo medical treatment, including surgery, but the property management discriminated against him by failing to adequately accommodate his disability. By the start of 2012, the couple was terminated without valid cause and despite good tenant reviews regarding their friendly, attentive, and outstanding performance.

In line with the aforementioned facts, it was clear that the property management company violated a variety of California’s employment and labor laws. The owner of the apartment complex retaliated against the couple for their refusal to participate in the management’s illegal activities, as well as against the husband who requested for accommodations in relation to his injuries. The owner also failed to address the couples’ complaints regarding her failure to pay wages due.

The couple’s ordeal during their employment caused them to incur lost wages and benefits, along with impairment of their future earning capacity after their wrongful termination, as well as emotional distress and anxiety as a direct result of the unlawful retaliation they were subjected to. However, Mesriani Law Group’s topnotch employment attorneys and reliable paralegal staff were able to effectively and aggressively handle the clients’ case, which resulted in a convincing victory for the aggrieved couple. They were awarded a favorable settlement of $80,000.00, which would cover for special, general, and punitive damages they incurred. With this successful settlement, clients can be assured of nothing but positive results from the unmatched dedication and expertise of the law firm’s Los Angeles employment lawyers.



ABOUT MESRIANI LAW GROUP
Mesriani Law Group is a full service law firm operating out of Los Angeles, California, with several distinct and independent divisions, each of which specializes in a different branch of the law. Mesriani Law Group currently maintains divisions specializing in Business and Corporate Litigation, Personal Injury Litigation, Social Security Disability (SSD/RSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) claims, and Employment/Labor Law.

For more information about Mesriani Law Group, please go to http://www.mesrianilaw.com/
Mesriani Law Group
510 Arizona Avenue
Santa Monica, CA 90401
T: (310) 826-6300
F: (310) 820-1258
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