California employees might be confronted with numerous issues at work that can lead to them losing the job or leaving due to treatment that they believe goes beyond what they are willing to tolerate. Included in that might be ethical factors or demands that employers make upon employees. If this is pervasive and ongoing, employees can look into employment law to see if they have the right to consider a legal filing based on various illegal acts.
A class action lawsuit has been filed by two former employees at Wells Fargo. The suit seeks $2.6 billion for multiple violations that the company is alleged to have committed. The company is said to have coerced workers to meet significant sales quotas. Whether or not they used fraudulent tactics to do so was said to be irrelevant to the company. Those who failed to reach the quotas were subject to retaliation in the form of demotions, were forced to submit a resignation, or were outright fired. This case is for those who were working at the company in California over the past decade. That includes those who are still working there. It focuses on employees who adhered to the rules and faced penalties if they did not achieve the quotas.
The filing states that the company used such tactics as demotions or dismissals for workers who did not achieve those high quotas. Simultaneously, promotions were awarded to employees who did reach the quotas by opening accounts that were fraudulent. An estimated 5,300 employees of the company were dismissed because they opened accounts in the names of customers and did so without having been authorized by those customers. A settlement with the authorities cost Wells Fargo $190 million. In the filing, the company is accused of wrongful termination, not paying proper wages including overtime, and unlawful business practices.
It is an unfortunate reality that certain businesses will use underhanded and outright illegal tactics during the course of business. While some employees might follow the lead of their employers in order to keep their jobs, others who do not could face sanctions and even lose their jobs for failing to comply. When there is this type of treatment of workers, those who are subjected to it need to be aware of their rights. Contacting an attorney experienced in a wrongful termination can help with pursuing a case.
Source: Fox Business, “Former employees file class action against Wells Fargo,” David Bailey, Sept. 24, 2016