Pure Wafer $225K Settlement Over California Labor Violations

Case Background

Gzim Kovacevic initiated a representative action lawsuit against Pure Wafer, Inc. in the Superior Court of California for the County of Santa Clara. Kovacevic worked as a non-exempt, hourly employee for the Delaware-based corporation from approximately March 8, 2019, until February 2, 2022. Pure Wafer, Inc. maintained its business operations and a specific location within Santa Clara County, which established the proper venue for the legal proceedings. Kovacevic brought the complaint as an individual and as a proxy for the State of California to represent other aggrieved employees who worked for the company. The legal action officially began when the complaint was filed on August 4, 2022, following the Plaintiff's efforts to notify state labor authorities about the company's employment practices.

Cause

The dispute centered on systemic illegal employment practices and willful violations of the California Labor Code. Kovacevic alleged that Pure Wafer, Inc. created and maintained workplace policies that intentionally denied employees their fundamental labor rights. One primary cause of action stemmed from the company's COVID-19 safety protocols. The company required all staff to undergo screenings, including temperature checks and health questionnaires, before they could start their shifts. However, the employer did not pay the workers for the time they spent completing these mandatory activities. Furthermore, the Plaintiff argued that the company failed to provide duty-free meal and rest periods. He claimed that management routinely forced employees to work through their breaks or frequently interrupted their rest time and subsequently failed to pay the required premium compensation for those missed opportunities.

Injury

While the case did not involve physical trauma from an accident, the injuries were economic and professional. Kovacevic and his colleagues suffered the loss of earned wages, including minimum, regular, and overtime pay for all hours they actually worked. The Plaintiff also cited a conscious disregard for the rights of the workforce. Because the company did not provide accurate, itemized wage statements, the employees faced the injury of being unable to track their labor correctly. They could not properly verify their total hours worked, applicable hourly rates, or the specific wages owed for their unpaid labor and missed break premiums. This lack of transparency prevented the workers from knowing exactly how much the company underpaid them.

Damages Sought

Kovacevic sought a variety of financial remedies to address the widespread labor violations. The lawsuit demanded more than $25,000.00 in total damages and penalties. Under the Private Attorneys General Act (PAGA), the Plaintiff pursued civil penalties for every pay period in which the company violated state law. These demands covered unpaid minimum and overtime wages that had accrued since at least April 2021. The Plaintiff also requested the recovery of unpaid meal and rest period premiums. Beyond the base wages and penalties, the legal filing asked for the reimbursement of all litigation costs and reasonable attorneys' fees incurred during the process.

Key Arguments and Proceedings

Legal Representation

Plaintiff(s): Gzim Kovacevic.

·       Counsel for Plaintiff(s): Larry W. Lee | Kristen M. Agnew | Nicholas Rosenthal

Defendant(s): Pure Wafer, Inc.

·       Counsel for Defendant(s): Nathan K Low

Claims

The Plaintiff organized the lawsuit around several distinct violations of the California Labor Code.

Unpaid Minimum and Overtime Wages The legal team argued that the company intentionally failed to pay for all hours worked. They focused on the time spent during pre-shift COVID-19 screenings, which they classified as compensable time.

Meal and Rest Break Violations Kovacevic asserted that the company did not fulfill its obligation to provide off-duty, 30-minute meal periods and 10-minute rest breaks. The claim stated that these breaks were consistently interrupted or skipped without the workers receiving mandatory premium pay.

Inaccurate Wage Statements The Plaintiff claimed that the pay stubs issued by Pure Wafer, Inc. was legally deficient. Because the company omitted the time spent on screenings and failed to include break premiums, the wage statements did not reflect the true number of hours worked or the correct gross and net wages earned.

PAGA Representative Action Before filing the suit, Kovacevic sent a formal notice to the California Labor & Workforce Development Agency (LWDA) on April 29, 2022. When the agency did not respond within the statutory timeframe, he gained the right to sue as a proxy for the state to collect civil penalties.

Defense

Pure Wafer, Inc. generally denied the allegations of systemic wrongdoing. While the company acknowledged that it operated in California and employed the Plaintiff, it resisted the claim that its policies were designed to circumvent the Labor Code. The defense typically argues in these types of cases that any missed breaks resulted from individual employee choices rather than a corporate mandate. Additionally, the company likely contended that the time spent on COVID-19 screenings was so minimal that it did not require compensation under the law.

Settlement

Rather than proceeding to a full jury trial, the parties entered into negotiations to resolve the matter. The litigation concluded with a settlement agreement totaling $225,585. This amount functioned to settle the claims for unpaid wages, statutory penalties under the Private Attorneys General Act, and the various Labor Code violations alleged by Kovacevic. The settlement provided a resolution for both the individual claims of the Plaintiff and the representative claims brought on behalf of the other workers at the Santa Clara facility. This agreement effectively ended the legal dispute and covered the legal fees and costs associated with the representative action.

Court documents are available upon request at jurimatic@exlitem.com