Fierce legal battle restores member’s job
12:06 PM - September 25, 2012
Unjust termination withdrawn after pressure from expert staff and
member leaders
After intense legal negotiations and numerous solidarity actions,
Linda Martinez went back to work nine months after being unjustly
terminated by the Department of Social Services (DSS). “The
amount of persistence and expertise used to handle my case was
impressive. I cannot thank Local 1000 enough for the work they
performed on my behalf,” said Martinez.
During Thanksgiving week 2011, Linda participated in a Joint
Labor Management Committee meeting. That same week she received a
notice of termination signed by a DSS representative who sat
across from her at the negotiating table. The notice cited a list
of minute infractions that hardly merited any disciplinary action
let alone termination.
Staff and member leaders embarked upon a long road of legal
battles and negotiation with Linda’s employer. Moments before
beginning a trial, Linda and DSS settled her appeal, and Linda
returned to work on August 22, 2012 with no disciplinary action.
“The Department’s initial action was inexcusably heavy-handed,”
said Theresa Witherspoon, Local 1000 attorney who handled her
case. “Linda was subjected to a terrible injustice, and it was
imperative that we kept fighting for her.”
Martinez, a Disability Evaluation Analyst I who works for the
Disability Determination Services Division (DDSD), has been a
state employee for 26 years and has worked for DSS for 10. She is
also the Secretary-Treasurer for District Labor Council 744, and
currently sits on the Secure Retirement for All Californians
Committee and DDSD Action Committee, which is comprised of
Local 1000 members and staff.
“I had the complete support of the Local 1000 DDSD team, staff
and the statewide officers. They had a concrete plan and handled
everything very well. It would have been impossible for me to be
as persistent alone as they were as a team,” said Martinez. “The
union was there for me every step of the way and is the reason I
am now working again. There is no doubt in my mind that they
always had my back.”