Bob Baffert Racing, Horse Groomer's Reach Tentative Lawsuit Settlement

CYPRESS, CA 0151 A tentative settlement has been reached in a lawsuit brought by a horse groomer against Bob Baffert Racing that alleged various state labor code violations at Los Alamitos Race Course.

Ruben Ortiz Salgado's proposed class-action Los Angeles Superior Court lawsuit sought unspecified damages as well as attorneys' fees and civil penalties. Among the suit's allegations are that the workers have not been paid all overtime owed, have been denied some meal and rest breaks and have not been compensated for business-related expenses.

On Thursday, attorneys for Salgado and Baffert Racing filed joint court papers with Judge Elihu M. Berle informing him of a tentative resolution of the case pending the drafting of the appropriate papers and the filing of additional pleadings seeking preliminary approval from the judge, all within 90 days.

The judge put the case on hold in March pending a July 8 status conference so that the parties could mediate the case before veteran civil law trial attorney Laurie Saldana. No tentative settlement terms were divulged.

The proposed class consisted of current and former Baffert Racing employees who worked for the company for up to four years before the filing of the lawsuit on Jan. 9. Baffert Racing hired Salgado in June 2023 and his job duties at the Los Alamitos Race Track include taking care of the same five horses and cleaning their stable, a job in which he generally worked six days a week at $15.50 per hour, according to the suit.

However, Salgado and the other proposed class members were not paid for all hours worked and consistently worked "off the clock" because the company had a policy and practice of rounding down work hours to the detriment of employees, the suit alleged.

Baffert Racing also required Salgado to work beyond his work shift by returning to work the same day to get food and water ready for the horses and leave the same items for the horses until the next day, the suit stated.

The organization had no formal system to clock in an out and Salgado was not required to fill out time sheets, according the suit, which further stated that Baffert Racing manufactured pay stubs that looked like they have accurate numbers on them, including the hourly rate and hours worked.

Salgado's biweekly pay stubs always listed 80 hours of work, the plaintiff contended.

"The total hours worked on the pay stubs are manufactured numbers, created out of thin air to give the pay stubs the air of legitimacy," the suit stated.

Baffert Racing also does not provide all required or timely rest and meal periods, according to the suit.

"In fact, plaintiff never received any meal breaks whatsoever, despite his shifts being longer than five hours," the complaint alleged.

Baffert Racing additionally had not reimbursed Salgado and other workers for business expenses, including using their personal cell phones to talk about business matters with management, according to the suit, which further alleged employees are not always fully paid for wages owed when they quit or are terminated.