Background
Julio Aguilar-Padilla was employed by Boydston Equipment Manufacturing, LLC. After taking leave pursuant to an Oregon administrative rule designed to protect quarantining workers, Aguilar-Padilla was fired. He sued for statutory and noneconomic damages under federal and Oregon state employment laws. A jury concluded the employer unlawfully terminated him and awarded damages and full attorney’s fees. The employer appealed the judgment and the fees award.
The court’s reasoning
The court held that the Oregon Safe Employment Act’s anti-retaliation provision covers violations of administrative rules that implement state safety statutes. The court found that the district court did not err in interpreting the scope of the right afforded by the COVID Rule. Regarding jury instructions, the court concluded any error was harmless because the evidence showed the employee was fired for quarantining. On attorney’s fees, the court agreed that some fee entries related solely to state law damages should be deducted from the award.
What it means going forward
Employers must ensure that administrative rules implementing safety statutes are treated as protected rights under state anti-retaliation laws. Courts must carefully apportion attorney’s fees when a case involves both federal and state claims with distinct damage calculations.