Document ID: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-3_14-cv-04672/USCOURTS-cand-3_14-cv-04672-2/pdf.json

Parties Involved:
JungOak Cha
Plaintiff
The Permanente Medical Group
Defendant

Document Text:

United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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 Defendant admits that Ms. Cha’s employer – and thus the proper defendant in this action –

is “The Permanente Medical Group.” 

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

JUNGOAK CHA,

Plaintiff,

v.

THE KAISER PERMANENTE,

Defendant.

___________________________________/

No. C-14-4672-EMC

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE RE

PLAINTIFF’S FIFTH CAUSE OF

ACTION (BREACH OF COLLECTIVE

BARGAINING AGREEMENT)

On February 26, 2015, Plaintiff filed a first amended complaint (FAC) in this action. Docket

No. 28. The fifth cause of action pleaded in Plaintiffs’ FAC is for breach of the collective

bargaining agreement between Plaintiffs’ union and the Defendant, The Permanente Medical Group

(TPMG).1

 In paragraph 14 of Plaintiff’s FAC, she alleges that the union “violated its duty to fairly

represent me as its member in failing to timely file a grievance and in its failure to file a grievance

at all.” FAC ¶ 14 (emphasis added). Plaintiff further states in her opposition to Defendant’s

currently pending motion to dismiss that “[s]he failed to get help from [her] union.” Docket No. 38

at 8. 

It appears that the Plaintiff’s allegations that her union never filed a grievance on her behalf

are contradicted by other portions of Ms. Cha’s pleadings. Most notably, Ms. Cha attached (as

Exhibit 4 to her FAC) an email dated March 16, 2012, purportedly sent from a union representative

to Defendant transmitting a grievance regarding Plaintiff’s termination from employment. The same

Case 3:14-cv-04672-EMC Document 41 Filed 04/14/15 Page 1 of 2
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

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 The Court notes that a number of other emails in the email chain produced in Exhibit 5 are

omitted, as indicated by the words “Quoted text hidden.” 

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exhibit also contains an email that appears to be from the union representative to Ms. Cha, attaching

a copy of a grievance filed with Defendant. 

Somewhat complicating matters is another email attached by Ms. Cha to her FAC, contained

in Exhibit 5. In that email, written on January 5, 2015, an employee of Defendant writes that he

believes the Union did not file a grievance. The Court notes, however, that Ms. Cha attempted to

redact a different email towards the bottom of Exhibit 5 that appears to have been sent by Ms. Cha

to an unidentifiable email account at yahoo.com on January 7, 2015. That partially redacted email

appears to state “I found that the cna [California Nurses Association i.e., Union] filed grievance in

other Email. I will show you LATER.”

The Court hereby ORDERS Plaintiff to produce an unredacted version of all of the emails

contained in Exhibit 5 to the Court by April 20, 2015, or to provide legal authority explaining why

such emails are not subject to production.2

 The Plaintiff shall also be prepared to address the issue

of whether her union filed a grievance on her behalf at the April 23 hearing on Defendant’s currently

pending motion to dismiss Ms. Cha’s FAC.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: April 14, 2015

_________________________

EDWARD M. CHEN

United States District Judge

Case 3:14-cv-04672-EMC Document 41 Filed 04/14/15 Page 2 of 2