A judge has placed on hold a lawsuit brought by a horse groomer at Los Alamitos Race Track against Bob Baffert Racing so the parties can try and settle the plaintiff's lawsuit alleging various state Labor Code violations.
Ruben Ortiz Salgado's proposed class-action Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit alleges multiple state Labor Code violations and seeks unspecified damages as well as attorneys' fees and civil penalties. Among the suit's allegations are that the workers have not been paid all overtime owed, have been denied some meal and rest breaks and have not been compensated for business-related expenses. Salgado seeks unspecified damages as well as attorneys' fees and civil penalties.
The proposed class consists of current and former Baffert Racing employees who worked for the company for up to four years before the filing of the lawsuit on Jan. 9. On Tuesday, Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elihu M. Berle placed a stay on the suit so the parties can engage in mediation. The judge scheduled a post-mediaton status conference for July 8.
According to the suit, Baffert Racing hired Salgado last June and his job duties at the Los Alamitos Race Track include taking care of the same five horses and cleaning their stable, a job in which he generally worked six days a week at $15.50 per hour, the suit states.
However, Salgado and the other proposed class members were not paid for all hours worked and consistently worked "off the clock" because the company had a policy and practice of rounding down work hours to the detriment of employees, the suit alleges.
Baffert Racing also required Salgado to work beyond his work shift by returning to work the same day to get food and water ready for the horses and leave the same items for the horses until the next day, the suit states.
The organization had no formal system to clock in an out and Salgado was not required to fill out time sheets, according the suit, which further states that Baffert Racing manufactured pay stubs that looked like they have accurate numbers on them, including the hourly rate and hours worked.
Salgado's biweekly pay stubs always listed 80 hours of work, the suit states.
"The total hours worked on the pay stubs are manufactured numbers, created out of thin air to give the pay stubs the air of legitimacy," the suit states.
Baffert Racing also does not provide all required or timely rest and meal periods, the suit states.
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"In fact, plaintiff never received any meal breaks whatsoever, despite his shifts being longer than five hours," the complaint states.
Baffert Racing additionally has not reimbursed Salgado and other workers for business expenses, including using their personal cell phones to talk about business matters with management, according to the suit, which further alleges employees are not always fully paid for wages owed when they quit or are terminated.
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