4 workers of a late actual property agent whose loss of life was acknowledged in a 2020 video tribute by Mayor Eric Garcetti are suing the deceased’s property, with some claiming they labored in a sexually charged environment the place their employer introduced prostitutes to the office have introduced.
Gregory Hartman, Mousa Kouy-Ghadosh, Sara Jadid Pilevarian and Mehrangiz Rodef Shalom filed lawsuits towards the property of Yoav Botach and a number of other of his firms on Wednesday, asserting unspecified claims for damages.
The costs embrace wrongful termination, sexual harassment, willful infliction of emotional stress, and failure to forestall discrimination, harassment and retaliation.
Shalom’s lawsuits primarily give attention to alleged violations of state labor regulation, together with refusal to pay wages for all hours labored and compensation for missed meal breaks. A lawyer for the Botach property didn’t instantly reply to at least one
Request for feedback.
Botach died in Might 2020 on the age of 87.
“Yoav Botach was an angel within the metropolis of angels,” mentioned Garcetti in a video for a tribute to Botach after the businessman’s loss of life. “One of the inspiring souls I’ve ever met and my coronary heart aches that he is gone now.”
In line with the lawsuit, Botach was not pleasant to the 4 plaintiffs.
“This case arises from the defendants’ sexually hostile work surroundings, their illegal dismissal from plaintiffs, and their willful disregard of California labor legal guidelines,” the lawsuit mentioned.
All plaintiffs have been employed as accountants, except Pilevarian, who labored as a housekeeper, the lawsuit states. The 4 have been employed in 2016-17.
Hartman was instructed to inform Botach when feminine tenants of his properties got here to his condominium to pay their lease in order that he may topic them to sexual gives and inappropriate conversations, the lawsuit mentioned. When feminine tenants prevented Botach, he turned indignant with Hartman for not being the businessman’s mediator for his tried sexual exploits, in line with the lawsuit.
Hartman and Kouy-Ghadosh needed to coordinate conferences between Botach and prostitutes, who in flip requested Hartman for intercourse, the lawsuit mentioned. Botach usually stroked the prostitutes in entrance of the workers, together with Kouy-
Ghadosh, who noticed Botach pay about $ 200 to get his nails carried out “with advantages,” in line with the lawsuit.
Pilevarian was as soon as requested to accompany an unknown girl into Botach’s bed room, the place she overheard him telling her how a lot he would pay her for her “providers,” the lawsuit says.
Hartman and Kouy-Ghadosh complained about Botach’s allegedly inappropriate sexual conduct, however Botach refused to be directed and instructed Kouy-Ghadosh to “thoughts his personal enterprise” in line with the lawsuit.
Botach threw objects at workers when he was indignant and as soon as left Pilevarian injured after being hit by a cellular phone, the go well with claims.
As soon as, when Pilevarian developed an allergic rash with a swollen face and restricted respiration, Botach instructed the opposite plaintiffs to not assist her and didn’t appear to care whether or not she lived or died, the lawsuit says.
“This was an integral a part of Botach’s obvious disregard for ladies and brazenly misogynistic attitudes,” the lawsuit mentioned.
On December 20, 2017, Botach’s grandson Mendy Botach falsely accused Hartman of colluding with one other member of the family of the businessman to take cash from him, in line with the lawsuit. When Mendy Botach approached Hartman
and made him concern for his security, Hartman took out his cellphone to name the police, the lawsuit says.
Mendy Botach put his palms on Hartman and requested that he flip off his cellphone, and the elder Botach instructed the plaintiff to go, the lawsuit says.
