In a noteworthy development, a judge has ruled that a 54-year-old former executive in the plumbing and HVAC industry must arbitrate his claims of wrongful termination. The plaintiff, Kerry Frederickson, alleges that his age played a role in his firing earlier this year. Judge Mel Red Recana of the Los Angeles Superior Court granted a motion by American Residential Services LLC to compel arbitration of Frederickson’s claims. These claims also include wrongful termination, harassment, retaliation, failure to prevent such actions, negligent hiring, supervision and retention, and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
The lawsuit has been put on hold pending the outcome of the arbitration, with a post-arbitration status conference scheduled for January 18th. In addition to American Residential Services LLC, Frederickson has also sued several other entities within the ARS network.
According to the complaint filed in February, Frederickson was initially hired by ARS in January 2013 as a general manager. Over the course of three years, he was promoted to a region manager overseeing operations in multiple western states from an office in Covina. In April 2020, he implemented a new pay plan to address ongoing wage-and-hour violations in the company’s Northern California branches.
However, upon becoming the region vice president in November 2021, Frederickson discovered that two Southern California branches had failed to implement the new pay plan. Despite raising his concerns with corporate executives, no substantial action was taken to rectify the situation. Frederickson claims he was told that implementing a new pay plan would disrupt business operations and increase costs.
Furthermore, the suit alleges that Frederickson was never properly compensated for the additional responsibilities he took on as a region vice president. During an executive leadership meeting in April 2022, when Frederickson disclosed his 30 years of service with the company, one executive responded insensitively, implying that it was time for older employees to make way for newer ones.
Subsequently, management began excluding Frederickson from meetings and correspondence related to the branches he oversaw. This exclusion, along with other concerning incidents, led Frederickson to fear for his job security. In November, when he once again raised concerns about the failure to implement the new pay plan, he was abruptly terminated during a meeting at an Orange hotel.
The lawsuit claims that Frederickson has suffered financial losses and emotional distress as a result of his termination.
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