Allen

I. INTRODUCTION

The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of defendants1 on plaintiff Joyce Allen’s complaint for wrongful termination and violations of the Equal Pay Act (EPA; Lab. Code § 1197.5 (section 1197.5)) and the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA; Gov. Code § 12940 et seq.). On appeal, plaintiff contends that reversal is warranted because her evidence raised triable issues on each of her claims. We reverse the judgment and remand with instructions.

II. FACTUAL BACKGROUND2

Plaintiff began working for Staples in October 2006 as a sales representative. In March 2015, she took a position as an outside facilities area sales manager (ASM), a position she held until June 2017. As an ASM, plaintiff “oversaw a team of [s]ales [r]epresentatives who were responsible for contracting with [business customers and] overseeing[] and managing client relationships and business sales of Staples products.” Narlock, a field sales director (FSD), supervised plaintiff and the other ASMs in the Pacific region during the time plaintiff held the position.

The defendants are Staples, Inc. (the parent), Staples Contract & Commercial, LLC (Staples), and Charles R. Narlock…