Josefina Esquivel, a long-time employee, has filed a lawsuit against her former employer, alleging severe violations of employment law. On May 5, 2025, Esquivel lodged a complaint in the Superior Court of California for the County of Ventura against B & S Plastics, Inc., operating as Waterway Plastics. The lawsuit accuses the company of multiple offenses, including disability discrimination and wrongful termination.
Esquivel's legal battle stems from an incident in September 2019 when she injured her knee while working at Waterway Plastics. Despite notifying her supervisors and receiving medical restrictions to accommodate her injury, Esquivel claims that the company failed to respect these accommodations. Her lawsuit details how she was moved to departments where her work restrictions were ignored, exacerbating her condition. In April 2022, after being placed on disability leave due to her worsening knee condition, Esquivel alleges she was wrongfully terminated under the guise of a layoff despite the company hiring new employees at that time. She believes this termination was retaliatory, linked to her requests for accommodation and complaints about non-compliance with those accommodations.
The complaint outlines several causes of action against Waterway Plastics: disability discrimination under Government Code §12940 et seq., retaliation for requesting accommodations and exercising rights under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA), failure to provide reasonable accommodation and engage in an interactive process as required by law, and wrongful termination in violation of public policy. Esquivel asserts that these actions violated fundamental public policies intended to protect employees from discrimination and retaliation based on disabilities.
Esquivel seeks various forms of relief from the court. She demands compensatory damages for lost wages and benefits due to wrongful termination and emotional distress caused by the alleged discriminatory practices. Additionally, she seeks punitive damages against Waterway Plastics for their purportedly malicious conduct in handling her employment situation. The lawsuit also requests equitable remedies such as reinstatement or correction of discriminatory practices within the company. Furthermore, Esquivel is pursuing attorney fees and costs associated with bringing this action forward.
Representing Josefina Esquivel are attorneys Pouya B. Chami, Pablo F. Colmenares, and Ghadah Abdalkarim from Chami Law PC based in Los Angeles. The case is identified as Case No. 2025CNUIOQEOD4 3651 in the Superior Court of California for Ventura County.