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LOS ANGELES (CNS) - A former accounting manager for Disney Enterprises Inc. and Partners Federal Credit Union has tentatively settled her whistleblower retaliation suit in which she alleged she had to quit in 2022 to avoid being fired on false misconduct charges.
Plaintiff Yuliya Titkova maintained in her Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit that she experienced retaliation because she complained to management that her supervisor had told employees to not report overtime pay due them. Her attorneys filed court papers on Tuesday with Judge Randolph M. Hammock stating that a "conditional" accord was reached and that a request for dismissal will be filed by Feb. 15. No terms were divulged.
In their court papers, defense attorneys denied Titkova's allegations and said her claims were barred by the statute of limitations. Disney Enterprises' lawyers also maintained Titkova did not work for their client.
Titkova, now 44, was hired in June 2018 and both Disney and Partners have offices in Burbank. She says she learned that her supervisor, Pooja Ralli Zandand, was allegedly telling workers not to report their overtime hours. Zandand was a co-defendant in the suit.
Titkova believed the order was illegal under federal and California law, but when she reported her concerns, Zandand reprimanded her and told her not to complain further if she wanted to remain employed, the suit stated.
Zandand falsely claimed the overtime reporting issue was resolved, according to the suit, which also states that Zandand started excluding Titkova from work meetings and would not talk with her about possible promotions.
In November 2022, Zandand and a second management representative told Titkova that a complaint was filed against her and that she was being put on administrative leave, the suit states.
The suit does not state the nature of the complaint other than to state that the allegations were false.
Five days later, management accused Titkova of threatening co-workers and leaving them demoralized, the suit states. Titkova responded that the allegations were untrue and that they were being made in retaliation for her coming forward about the overtime issue, the suit filed May 12 stated.
Titkova resigned in late November 2022 after Zandand and the second management representative told her that she would be fired for misconduct if she did not quit, the suit states. Titkova rejected a severance offer of $16,360, the suit states.