In The Media

As quoted in the story, the client had this to say about the lawsuit: “When Harris Ranch fired me, I felt like I had been thrown away like a used rag . . . . I sought legal help because I want Harris to respect my and other workers’ rights.”

LAAW’s Wage Protection Program Director, Carole Vigne, discusses in Eater.com how so-called "gig economy" staffing apps for the Restaurant industry may be contributing to misclassification of on-demand restaurant workers. “There’s no question that these workers who are going into restaurants, even on a part-time or temporary basis, are employees . . . the real question is who is the employer (the hiring app and/or the third-party business), and consequently, who is liable if workers are misclassified?”

Legal Aid at Work attorney Katie Fiester discusses the “huge step forward” that the newly passed bill (AB 673) is for workers. "This bill is really just a fix to remedy this issue and make sure that workers who are suffering the consequences of being paid late actually receive the penalty for it." The Bill now moves to Governor Newsom’s desk for his signature.

After fighting for decades, Legal Aid at Work Client Nelson Henry, 96, finally received the honorable discharge he was denied several decades ago when he was given a “blue discharge” because of his race.

Elizabeth Kristen discusses the lack of protections for LGBT workers nationwide and the related upcoming U.S. Supreme Court case on this issue in an article by the Center for Public Integrity (co-published by the Columbus Dispatch).  

The Director of LAAW's Wage Protection Program Carole Vigne was quoted in the Guardian about the exploitation that foreign "cultural exchange" participants often experience: "the lack of government oversight, the age of participants as well as potential cultural and language barriers conspire to 'increase the vulnerability' of members of the Summer Work Travel program." 

LAAW's efforts to fight against unfair treatment of girls at Campbell High School in Hawaiʻi is covered by KITV. The lawsuit alleges that Hawaiʻi's Department of Education has committed multiple violations of federal civil rights law by denying girls at Campbell the same athletic opportunities, treatment, and benefits that it provides boys—such as providing fewer teams to girls, inferior locker room space, and subpar competition facilities. The lawsuit followed approximately ten months of attempts by the ACLU of Hawai‘i to get DOE to voluntarily improve the way it treats girls, as required by federal law.

LAAW's successful efforts to upgrade our client's military discharge to "honorable" status was profiled in the Philadelphia Inquirer. Mr. Henry had been kicked out of the Army in 1945 with a "blue discharge," which was used to deny minority service members (primarily African-Americans and Lesbian and Gay service members) their hard-earned benefits. "I’m still wondering if it’s a dream,” Henry said Tuesday in his Logan Square apartment. “I’m not sure how many more days I have left, but I may not ever get over it. It’s a great feeling.”

Staff attorney Stacy Villalobos's efforts to help workers obtain and retain employment regardless of criminal conviction history was profiled in the San Jose Mercury News. " Stacy . . . travels around the Bay Area holding training sessions to inform people with criminal records about their rights. When she asks in the sessions if the participants have encountered the kinds of questions the [ban the box] law was written to stop, she said, 'almost everyone in the room raises their hands.'”