L.A. Superior Court Jury Awards Fired Worker $650K

Tuesday, March 28, 2017 | 0

A Los Angeles Superior Court jury has awarded an injured worker who was fired the day his light-duty placement ended $650,000 in damages, the plaintiff's attorney's office announced in a statement.

The jury ruled that jeans manufacturer Citizens of Humanity acted with malice, fraud and oppression in firing Noe Abarca, 61, a quality control inspector. Abarca had been placed on light duty due to a shoulder injury sustained by lifting boxes over the years, the Los Angeles law firm Kramer Holcomb Sheik LLP said.

The day the work restriction ended, the company fired Abarca. Plaintiff's attorneys argued that Citizens of Humanity's human resources director fraudulently stated on a workers' compensation form that the company first learned of the injury the day Abarca was fired. 

Of the $650,000 awarded to Abarca, $550,000 was designated punitive damages. 

Lead counsel Dan Kramer said in a statement that he hopes the verdict sends a message to the garment industry that "management cannot discriminate against any worker regardless of his or her title." 

Abarca had been with Citizens of Humanity for six years before being placed on light duty.