A California woman alleges she was wrongfully terminated from her managerial position at a Santa Clara restaurant due to pregnancy and disability discrimination. Maria Castaneda filed the complaint against 17 North San Pedro Street Partners LLC in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara, on September 3, 2024.
The lawsuit details that Castaneda began working for the defendant as a manager in April 2021. According to the complaint, she competently performed her duties until November 2023 when she informed her employer that she was pregnant. By January 2024, Castaneda had notified her employer of her expected due date in late June and by March 2024, her doctor placed her on work restrictions. Shortly thereafter, in March 2024, Castaneda claims she was terminated.
Castaneda accuses the defendants of multiple violations including gender discrimination under California Government Code §§12900 et seq., disability discrimination under the same code sections, retaliation for exercising her rights, failure to provide pregnancy leave as mandated by Cal. Gov’t C. §§12945(a), failure to accommodate her medical condition, and wrongful termination among others. The plaintiff asserts that these actions were taken against her because of her pregnancy and related medical conditions which constitute protected activities under state law.
In addition to alleging that the defendants failed to engage in an interactive process or provide reasonable accommodations for her condition, Castaneda also contends that they retaliated against her for requesting such accommodations. "Defendants discriminated against Plaintiff by treating Plaintiff differently and subjecting Plaintiff to adverse employment actions because of Plaintiff's pregnancy," reads part of the complaint.
The suit further claims that Castaneda has suffered significant emotional distress and financial losses due to these actions. She seeks general and special damages exceeding the jurisdictional minimum of the court, restitution damages for unpaid wages and commissions, punitive damages, attorney’s fees, and costs incurred during litigation.
The case is being handled by attorneys Aidin D. Ghavimi and Zachary D. Greenberg from Starpoint LC law firm. The case ID is 24CV446569 with Judge M. Arechiga reviewing it.