The earlier house owners of bakery chain Candy Woman Jane, going through “monetary issue,” have settled a wage theft lawsuit introduced by a former worker, based on court docket paperwork reviewed by The Instances.
Particulars of the settlement between SLJ Wholesale LLC and Candy Woman Jane LLC and Blanca Juarez, who labored on the bakery for about two months in 2022, are underneath seal.
The settlement addressed solely Juarez’s particular person claims. She alleged she was not compensated for all hours labored, together with additional time, in addition to for missed meal durations and relaxation breaks, based on a class-action lawsuit filed in June final yr in Los Angeles County Superior Court docket.
Juarez and her authorized counsel filed July 9 to dismiss her class-action lawsuit. An lawyer for Juarez didn’t reply to a request for remark. Juarez couldn’t be reached for remark.
Attorneys for the businesses behind the bakery had denied Juarez’s allegations. The court docket filings didn’t identify who owned the businesses.
The businesses maintained that Juarez and different workers who might be a part of the lawsuit have been paid “all sums earned by them which are due.” It’s unclear whether or not extra workers joined the swimsuit.
Attorneys for the earlier house owners of Candy Woman Jane didn’t reply to a request for remark concerning the settlement.
Juarez’s authorized case was forged into doubt after the bakery abruptly closed its enterprise on New’s Years Day, citing a scarcity of gross sales that prevented it from paying its “treasured workers,” based on a now-deleted Instagram put up from January.
A be aware from the house owners of Candy Woman Jane bakery tells clients that they’d determined to shut their enterprise in Santa Monica.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Instances)
Close to every week after the closure, attorneys for the bakery submitted court docket paperwork that mentioned the businesses intend to file for a state various to chapter, which might enable collectors, together with former workers, to attempt to get better what they’re owed.
Negotiations for a settlement to resolve Juarez’s particular person labor code claims started round Might, based on court docket paperwork. A duplicate of the settlement was filed to the state Labor and Workforce Growth Company on July 9.
Amid the authorized battle, Candy Woman Jane opened its doorways for enterprise once more — this time underneath the possession of Julie Ngu and Matt Clark.
The couple purchased the bakery’s property, together with the recipes and model identify, in February, emphasizing in interviews that they “actually, actually, actually wish to ensure that all people understands that we’ve nothing to do with the outdated house owners.”
Tables are piled up in opposition to the entrance counter of Candy Woman Jane in Santa Monica on Jan. 9, 2024.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Instances)
“We’re solely nearly as good as we deal with our personal folks. … Our workers is our No. 1 precedence,” Clark advised The Instances on Friday. “I’m glad that not less than that chapter of the outdated possession is over.”
