Mastagni Grows to Third Largest Law Firm in Sacramento

According to the Sacramento Business Journal, Mastagni, Hosltedt, Amick, Miller & Johnsen is now the third largest law firm in Sacramento.  The firm is "very pleased and proud to be ranked third in the greater Sacramento area," according to firm founder David P. Mastagni. The firm stands out among other large Sacramento firms as the only firm dedicated to representing working people and their labor associations. The firm ranked as Sacramento's fifth largest firm last year.

Court of Appeal Upholds Workers' Rights

The Third District Court of Appeal published its decision in City of Sacramento v. Workers Compensation Appeals Board (Cannon) (December 26, 2013, Court of Appeal Case No. C072944). That means the case can now be cited as precedent throughout the state. The decision establishes the Almaraz/Guzman rule is not limited to “complex and extraordinary" workers’ compensation claims, increasing accuracy and fairness in rating workers’ compensation injuries. Mastagni attorney Eric Ledger argued the case for the Sacramento police officer Arthur Cannon before the Court of Appeal.

Governor Expected to Sign Bill to Raise Minimum Wage to $10/hour

On Thursday, the state legislature approved AB 10 to raise California's minimum from $8 to $10 an hour.

Sacramento County Breaks Promise to Disabled Deputy Sheriff

Eric Henrikson is the lone survivor of a fatal sheriff's helicopter crash that killed two deputies eight years ago. According to former Sacramento Sheriff Lou Blanas, the day of the crash "was one of the worst days in my life and one of the worst days in the history of the Sheriff's Department."  At the time, the County promised to cover Henrikson for life.

Now, Sacramento County has cut off his disability and medical payments, according to Sacramento's ABC news affiliate, News 10.  According to Dep. Henrikson's attorney, David P. Mastagni, the County cut him off with no notice and "what the County is doing to this former deputy is not reflective of what the citizens of Sacramento County want for the deputy."

The News 10 reporters stated the County sued the helicopter manufacturer, Turbomeca, settling for $1.5 million and recently learned Henrikson allegedly settled his claims against Turbomeca for $26 million, noting "maybe he just had a better lawyer."  The reporters condemned the County for cutting off Dep. Henrikson, noting "a deal is a deal and its right here in black and white."

Employers Can be Sued for Invading Employees' Privacy

In Ignat v. Yum Brands, Inc. (March 18, 2013) Case No. G046343, the Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled employees can sue when their employers publicly disclose private facts about them, even if just verbally.  The case started when Melissa Ignat, a Yum Brands employee, returned to work after an absence to learn that her employer had revealed to her co-workers that she suffered from bipolar disorder.  She filed a lawsuit, alleging public disclosure of private facts.

The case is especially significant because the Court of Appeal abolished the requirement that disclosure happened in a document.  The Court decided there was no good reason for the "document requirement" and recognized that verbal disclosures can be just as harmful and written ones.  Since the requirement served no legitimate purpose, the Court allowed Ms. Ignat to sue her employer for verbally disclosing her condition to her co-workers.

Court of Appeal Increases Protections for Pregnant Workers

In Sanchez v. Swissport, Inc. (February 21, 2013) 2013 WL 635266, the Court of Appeal ruled employees fired for not returning to work after a pregnancy can still sue for pregnancy discrimination even though the employee exhausted all permissible leave available under the Pregnancy Disability Leave Law (PDLL).

In this case of first impression, the court explained that an employee who exhausts all of her statutory pregnancy disability leave may still state a claim for employment discrimination under FEHA because the remedies of the PDLL are meant to “augment, rather than supplant, those set forth elsewhere in the FEHA.” The statutory leave of four months available under the PDLL is “in addition to” the remedies set forth in FEHA governing pregnancy, childbirth, and pregnancy-related medical conditions. Compliance with the PDLL, thus, does not relieve an employer of its obligations under FEHA, including the obligation to provide a reasonable accommodation (which may in some cases exceed four months) to an employee disabled by pregnancy, so long as the accommodation does not impose an undue hardship on the employer.

In this case, the employee said Swissport terminated her because she was pregnant, was unable to work during her high-risk pregnancy, refused to grant her a reasonable accommodation in the form of allowing her to remain on leave until she gave birth, and terminated her because she sought such reasonable accommodations for her disability. The court concluded that these allegations were sufficient to state claims for sex and disability discrimination and retaliation in violation of FEHA.

Mastagni Law Fights for Veterans' Rights

The December 2012 issue of the California Public Employee Relations (CPER) Journal features an article by Mastagni Law partner, Christopher W. Miller.  After the Homecoming: A User’s Guide to the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act discusses how to honor the rights of returning veterans and comply with the law.

Under USERRA, employers must treat returning veterans as if they had been present and continuously working at their civilian jobs throughout their military service. Employees are entitled to more than merely their old job back. They are entitled to all the benefits, positions, and promotions they would have achieved if they had never left.  When employers do not honor veterans' rights, Mastagni Law fights for veterans' rights under the Act.