Teukolsky Law Files New Lawsuit Against Terranea Resort

Earlier today, Teukolsky Law filed a new lawsuit in Los Angeles Superior Court on behalf of Chad Bustos, a 61-year old former executive at the Terranea luxury resort. The lawsuit alleges Bustos was fired for opposing anti-pregnancy remarks made by Terranea’s president, Ralph Grippo, and for protecting the rights of young working mothers he supervised. Grippo recruited Bustos to be Terranea’s Chief Marketing Officer in 2023. The two previously worked together for 11 years. Bustos supervised an all-female marketing team, three of whom were young moms with kids under the age of three.

The lawsuit alleges that during a meeting in February 2024, Grippo became enraged upon learning one woman on the team planned to go out on maternity leave shortly after another had just returned from maternity leave. He allegedly pushed his chair back, stood up, and aggressively interrogated each woman in the room, demanding to know if they were pregnant. He allegedly pointed to each woman in turn, asked “Are you pregnant,” and waited for her to respond. Under California law, it is illegal for employers to ask employees about medical conditions, including pregnancy. Courts have previously found that anti-pregnancy comments are evidence of sex discrimination.

When Bustos confronted Grippo and told him his anti-pregnancy remarks were inappropriate, the lawsuit alleges Grippo doubled down, telling Bustos, “I can ask people whatever I want, I can ask what they had for dinner, I can ask if they are pregnant.”  Even though the women complained to Human Resources, Grippo allegedly has yet to apologize for his unlawful conduct. It is unclear whether Terranea has taken any disciplinary action against Grippo, who remains President to this day.

The lawsuit alleges that after Grippo’s anti-pregnancy tirade, Grippo started treating the all-female marketing team harshly, demanding they arrive at work by 8AM and leave no earlier than 6PM, in addition to working holidays and weekends. Grippo allegedly told the women that if they did not want to work these hours, they “should go work for a Marriott.”

Believing Grippo’s demands were retaliatory, Bustos pleaded with Grippo to give the young moms on his team some flexibility because they were responsible for dropping off and picking up their young kids from daycare. Grippo allegedly refused. According to the lawsuit, he started monitoring Terranea’s security cameras to see when the women were coming and going. He allegedly demanded Bustos discipline two of the young moms who arrived after 8AM and left before 6PM for childcare reasons. Bustos refused, telling Grippo that his retaliatory conduct would lead to the company “being sued.”

In early August 2024, Grippo allegedly tried to force Bustos to resign. Bustos allegedly told Grippo he would not resign and again asked Grippo to refrain from “targeting” his team.  The lawsuit alleges Grippo responded by firing Bustos on August 28, 2024. Grippo’s alleged retaliation continued: he later allegedly refused to promote the woman who reported his anti-pregnancy tirade to Human Resources, saying she had “attacked” him by reporting him to HR and “would ‘have to prove she was sorry for doing that to him’ before he would promote her.”

Bustos’s complaint alleges claims for wrongful termination and failure to prevent and correct discriminatory and retaliatory conduct. Ms. Teukolsky has filed previous lawsuits against Terranea and JC Resorts, including a wage-and-hour lawsuit that settled for $2.15 million in 2019, a sexual harassment lawsuit on behalf of four young women which settled in 2024 for an undisclosed amount, and a sexual harassment lawsuit on behalf of Sandra Pezqueda. Ms. Pezqueda was named a TIME Magazine Person of the Year as one of the “silence breakers” who spoke out about the sexual harassment she allegedly experienced while working as a dishwasher at Terranea.

“Chad Bustos is a true ally,” said Ms. Teukolsky. “He stood up for the rights of pregnant women and working mothers and was fired. No one should have to choose between motherhood and a job. We look forward to holding Terranea accountable for its actions.”

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