Duran
Duran v. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection
Opinion
Trial Court Opinion
I. BACKGROUND
1 A. Parties 2 Plaintiff Ralph Duran is employed by CAL FIRE as a Fire Captain. Compl. ¶ 9. 3 Plaintiff Michael Esparza is also employed by CAL FIRE; he was a Fire Apparatus 4 Engineer until on or about January 23, 2022, when he became a Fire Captain. Compl. ¶ 5 10; Amended Answer (dkt. 43) ¶ 10. 6 CAL FIRE is a state agency that provides fire protection and stewardship services 7 throughout the state. Compl. ¶ 11. CalHR is the appointing authority of CAL FIRE 8 employees and acts as the representative of the governor in his capacity as “state 9 employer” for labor relations purposes. Compl. ¶ 12; FAA ¶ 12. Defendant Joe Tyler is 10 the Director of CAL FIRE; defendant Eraina Ortega is the Director of CalHR. Compl. 11 ¶¶ 13–14.
B. COVID-19 Testing Policy
13 In August 2021, CAL FIRE implemented a policy requiring its employees to either 14 show proof of vaccination against COVID-19 or undergo weekly testing. Id. ¶¶ 20–21. 15 Because they did not provide proof of vaccination, Plaintiffs were subject to weekly 16 testing. Id. ¶¶ 3, 9–10, 41–45. Under this policy, failure to comply could result in 17 disciplinary action up to and including dismissal.…