Facts

Bozena Klune filed an individual and wage and hour class action against Ashley Furniture Inc. Stoneledge Furniture LLC, and JAG Daswatta.

PLAINTIFF'S CONTENTIONS:
Plaintiff was a salesperson for defendants' store in Palmdale and defendant Daswatta was her supervisor. Plaintiff contended that she performed satisfactorily and was on track to become a member of the "2012 Million Dollar Club," and with it, a bonus. However, Daswatta and other individual defendants working for defendants botched it by discriminating against her and she did not get the bonus.

Plaintiff contended that one of her coworkers, Elizabeth Bell, verbally abused her and called her a "stupid Polack" and "old lady" in front of coworkers and customers. She complained to Daswatta about Bell's behavior, but Diswatta ignored her complaints. Plaintiff claimed that another supervisor gave a coworker and manager money to transfer sales to Bell so that Bell could collect commissions she did not actually earn. However, plaintiff claimed, defendants failed to take any action to rectify the situation, and instead criticized plaintiff for lodging such a serious complaint. Plaintiff also alleged that Bell physically assaulted her by kicking her and punching her, which a customer had witnessed. Plaintiff filed a restraining order against Bell and had to take a day off to attend a hearing in relation to the incident. Plaintiff claimed defendants refused to make up that day so she lost potential commission. Defendants then placed her on paid leave, over her objection, while they investigated. Consequently, plaintiff could not make the numbers to reach the 2012 Million Dollar Club. Bell, who was never disciplined, became a member of the prestigious club and received the bonus that came along with it. Plaintiff alleged that she was never interviewed in connection with the alleged investigation. Plaintiff also alleged she fainted on the sales floor due to her diabetes, and was wrongfully accused of providing a customer's confidential information. The last incident ultimately led to her termination on the date of her daughter's death anniversary, a fact known to Daswatta.

Plaintiff asserted various causes of action on an individual and class basis for, among others, violations of the Labor Code, wrongful termination in violation of policy or statute, harassment based on age, sex, national origin/ancestry, medical conditions, and actual and perceived physical disabilities. Plaintiff also claimed failure to accommodate, failure to engage in the interactive process, assault and battery, defamation, failure to pay overtime pay, failure to provide adequate meal periods, failure to reimburse, failure to furnish accurate wage statements, waiting time penalties, and unlawful, unfair, and fraudulent business activity.

DEFENDANTS' CONTENTIONS:
Defendants denied plaintiff's allegations.

Result

The court granted defendants' motion for summary judgment on plaintiff's PAGA claim, plaintiff's individual claim for failure to indemnify and reimburse expenditures/losses, and plaintiff's representative claim under California Business and Professions Code section 17200. The only claims that remained at issue at the time of trial were plaintiff's individual claims for unpaid overtime, missed meal periods, missed rest periods, waiting time penalties, failure to keep accurate payroll records, and inaccurate wage statements. Shortly before trial was scheduled to start, plaintiff accepted defendants' Rule 68 Offer of Judgment. As a result, the court entered judgment pursuant to the agreed upon terms of the Rule 68 Offer of Judgment, awarding plaintiff $47,105, which included $30,000 in attorney fees and costs.

Other Information

Plaintiff's individual harassment and discrimination claims were remanded to state court on September 4, 2014. The court struck plaintiff's class allegations on October 27, 2014.