California Workers' Compensation Statute Held Not To Support A Common Law Tort Claim

California Labor Code section 132a, the anti-retaliation provision of the state workers' compensation statute, has commonly been used to support a tort claim for wrongful termination in violation of public policy. Plaintiffs often argue at the demurrer stage that the California Supreme Court's decision in City of Moorpark, 18 Cal. 4th 1143 (1998), provides the basis for such relief. City of Moorpark, however, never actually addressed the specific issue of whether Labor Code section 132a could properly form the basis for such a tort claim. A recent decision by a California Court of Appeal, Dutra v. Mercy Medical Center Mt. Shasta, No. C067169 (Sept. 26, 2012), focused on that inquiry and determined that a plaintiff cannot avail herself of section 132a as the basis of a tort action for wrongful termination. The Court of Appeal's decision permits an employer to attack the complaint at its initial stages and close off an avenue commonly used by plaintiffs to maintain civil actions for wrongful termination claims related to workers' compensation actions.

Background

The plaintiff worked for Mercy Medical Center Mt. Shasta as a housekeeper. She injured her back at work on January 31, 2008, and filed a workers' compensation claim.

The medical center terminated the plaintiff's employment on March 19, 2008, on the following grounds: (1) gossiping at work while on-duty after having already been counseled for that behavior; (2) check fraud; and (3) falsifying her timecard and leaving work without clocking out (abandoning her post). The plaintiff alleged that the medical center wrongfully terminated her in violation of public policy for terminating her employment after she filed a workers' compensation claim.

The trial court granted the medical center's motion to dismiss the plaintiff's wrongful termination claim on the ground that such a claim is under the exclusive jurisdiction of California's Workers' Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) under Labor Code section 132a.

California Labor Code Section 132a

Labor Code section 132a makes it a misdemeanor for an employer to discriminate in any way, including discharge or threat of discharge, against an employee who has filed or is thinking about filing a workers' compensation claim or an employee who has received a workers' compensation award. The employee who has been discriminated against is entitled to a penalty (not to exceed $10,000), reinstatement, and reimbursement for lost wages and work benefits. This...