YouTube’s famous makeup artist, vlogger, and overall beauty influencer James Charles was accused of wrongfully terminating a former employee. Recently he has been under fire for several accusations and controversies. In addition to accusations of sending inappropriate messages to minors, yet another person has come forward to shed light on her experience as his employee.
Kelly Rocklein, Charles’ former video editor revealed that she experienced terrible treatment and wrongful firing. On April 26, Rocklein took to Twitter with a few cryptic messages about her departure. She posted: “Watching the same people who screwed me over massively end up in deep scandals isn’t news to me, it’s karmic debt;” and “Won 1, going 2 for 2 because I’m all about Law and Order.”
All insinuating that she would be taking legal action against Charles. Although she had not disclosed that she was filing a wrongful termination lawsuit directly, an unjust termination at work lawyer in Los Angeles would strongly advise wrongfully fired employees to refrain from doing this because it can negatively affect your lawsuit. Quite literally, everything you say can and will be used against you in court by the defendant’s attorney to undermine your claim.
What Did James Charles Do Exactly?
Evidence revealed that Charles’ failed to pay employees overtime, engaged in disability discrimination, and failed to provide accommodations when needed. Rocklein specifically had been receiving poor treatment and was not getting paid for all the hours she contributed. Allegations also reveal that she worked two different roles for Charles for a total of 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. He had even promised her a raise, but that failed to happen too.
Although it is uncertain when Rocklein got injured, a former producer claimed she sustained an injury that required emergency medical treatment. It was so severe that she had to take time off work. In response, Charles is claimed to have fired her when she returned from medical leave for not being dedicated to her career.
New California Leave Law
In California, companies with five or more employees can participate in job-protected time-off as of January 1, 2021. Governor Gavin Newsom expanded on the California Family Rights Act (CRFA) to require employers to provide certain unpaid, protected medical, family, and military leave to eligible employees. If Rocklein has strong evidence to back up her claim, paired with the new law, she can sue Charles for emotional damages and lost wages by consulting a Los Angeles labor attorney for employees like Mann & Elias.
In response to all of the lawsuits and allegations, Charles YouTube channel has been demonetized and removed as host from his YouTube series, Instant Influencer.
