Maria Stella Becerra, a former employee of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA), has filed a lawsuit alleging severe workplace misconduct, including retaliation and discrimination. The complaint was filed on January 21, 2025, in the Superior Court of California, County of Santa Clara against VTA and unnamed defendants. Becerra's allegations include violations of labor laws and the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA).
The case centers around Becerra's claims that she faced retaliation after reporting compliance issues related to disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) contracts during her tenure as Business Diversity Programs Manager at VTA. Hired on June 27, 2022, Becerra alleges that she identified illegal substitutions of DBE firms in May 2023 and reported these violations to appropriate authorities. In response, she claims to have faced a series of retaliatory actions from VTA, including a three-day unpaid suspension and exclusion from significant projects like the BART Silicon Valley Phase II contracts.
Becerra further asserts that her whistleblower status declaration on September 19, 2023, led to intensified retaliatory measures by VTA. These included professional demotion, reduced responsibilities, and exclusion from meetings. She also reports being forced into taking FMLA leave due to emotional distress caused by this ongoing harassment. Additionally, Becerra accuses VTA of violating the Equal Pay Act by paying a less experienced male consultant more for similar work.
In her complaint, Becerra seeks general and special damages for economic losses due to demotion and suspension. She is also pursuing statutory penalties under various labor codes and government statutes for whistleblower retaliation and equal pay violations. Furthermore, she demands punitive damages to deter similar conduct by VTA in the future.
The case is being handled by attorneys Joshua I. White and Joseph A. Gross from Laurel Employment Law. It has been assigned Case No.: 25CV456960 in the Superior Court of California with Judge C. Roman overseeing proceedings.