The DLSE fear machine is kicking into high gear, courtesy of DLSE attorney Richard Munoz and DLSE Deputy Chief Lupe Almaraz

Earlier this week, attorney Richard Munoz began his witness tampering communications with those witnesses that are not on his list. What's it called when the other side unduly influences the witnesses of the other side? Well, it wasn't just Richard Munoz doing the tampering communicating, it was also Lupe Almaraz.

Mr. Almaraz stopped by the Santa Ana office today at around 10:30am and intimidated hushed all available females down into the 5th floor conference room. Gee, I wonder why all the men were not invited to Lupe's party? Maybe Lupe wanted to give training on sexual discrimination to only one gender; anyway, he can pontificate those points on June 4th.

Richard Munoz spent a lot of time with the female hearing officers in Santa Ana this last Tuesday...what is it with DLSE trying to prep, solicit information, and/or recruit those that have no interest in Richard's & Lupe's quest? If Richard and Lupe aren't busy doing absolutely nothing for the people of California, then they're busy wasting taxpayer dollars on stuff that has no bearing on DLSE's mission.

baby in diapers Robert Jones crawls away like a scared little infant when served with ACLU paperwork. (click on pic to enlarge)

What kind of a lawyer would attempt to eliminate the free speech of others? Robert Jones is unfit to serve the people of California, and he's especially unfit to serve the people working in the DLSE.

It's been commented to me that I'm smart, I can hire outside counsel, and I stand up for my rights. Think of all the people that the DLSE is screwing over who are not smart, who cannot hire their own counsel, and who cannot stand up for themselves.

If they can do this to me, then what do you think they are doing to people who can't afford counsel? What do you think they are doing to those who are not smart & educated? What do you think that the Robert Jones administration is doing to those that cannot stand up for themselves?

Robert Jones was totally prepared to strip away his subordinates' freedom to speak...until the ACLU became involved. Once the ACLU served him, the coward ran away, showing the world that he had no conviction in the illegal gag order he issued. The level of a person's character & integrity is what that person does when no one is looking. It seems that this guy tries to take every opportunity to screw over the workers of California, his own staff, and for what? For John Rea and Vicky Bradshaw to give him a reach-around?

DLSE's Deputy Labor Commissioner IV (Regional Manager) exam is a joke, a disgrace, and another mirror to the division's magic

You can never win in a rigged game. The questions were deliberately easy so that anyone could pass. So what happens? Everyone, to my knowledge, has failed. Not only do these people (DLSE management) suck at preparing their qualified staff for this promotion, but they also suck at devising such simplistic, subjective questions for such a position. I don't know if the panel was developmentally disabled (meaning that they couldn't develop a proper DLC IV exam), but here are some questions they might was to consider for the next DLC IV exam; they are more honest, more appropriate to DLSE's real promotion system, and reflect the current day-to-day operations.

Q1-your division doesn't have a policy & procedures for anything, since each office does things their own way. What special office rules would you implement to screw over the taxpayer?
Q2-the Labor Commissioner wants you to conduct a secret investigation against a suspected blogger; what steps do you take to keep the Labor Commissioner off your ass?
Q3-if a DLC III gets drunk at a subordinate's house party, then how soon should the supervisor start taking aspirin for the hangover headache?
Q4-your Regional Manager (DLC IV) is about to retire; name all the ways to start sucking up to the bosses in order to get promoted to that vacancy?
Q5-one of your offices is complaining about not having safety glass barriers. What's the best way to keep them from bitching AND not to install the safety glass?

Feel free to post comments and add your own questions that the DLSE could really use in the next exams....

Comments to this morning's post (from the above post)

I don't know if DLSE Acting Labor Commissioner Robert Jones, Deputy Chief Lupe Almaraz, or Assistant Chief Greg Rupp swore an oath to anything, except maybe to themselves. I would assume that during the course of their respective careers, that they've made compromises-as most of us have. The problem with them though, is that the compromises they've made are on the other side of good, respectability, and integrity. Hell's bells, at least when I go down, I know that I will have gone down on the right side, and I didn't drop to my knees to get there.

Cowardice appears in many flavors, and some go to great lengths to mask their cowardice. It's easier for him to cower in front of his bosses ('just support their positions & you'll get promoted') and then to act like a bully to those beneath his pay grade ('do it or else'). A person of true character behaves the same, both in front of bosses and subordinates. This guy doesn't ruffle any feathers above him yet kicks up a lot of dust beneath him...why do you think that is?

Some people whore themselves for 20+ years just to think that they've made it to the top of their itty, bitty kingdom. At the end of the day, what has Greg Rupp really become? Is he funny? Does he have interesting stories to tell? Is he an intelligent boss? Would you want him in your circle of acquaintances? And to hit this point home, does anyone go to this guy for help unless it's absolutely necessary? This guy is an Assistant Chief and no one wants to deal with him. How sad & pathetic that his career has formed into an island of isolation...you'd think someone would acquire more supporters as they walk thru life...this guy went the opposite direction and alienated almost everyone except Abby, Anne, and those licking his boots.

I heard that Greg Rupp was once a liked by his peers (when he was a DLC I). After he got promoted, he became distrusting, moody, and angry. Anyone can bark out orders, and that's how Greg manages: do it or else. It's not that Greg doesn't know how to stand up for what he believes in: he can't, because he doesn't have the backbone for it. His path is like the lower socioeconomic, trailer park version of Citizen Kane; instead of Greg Rupp whispering "Rosebud," he's whispering "double-double with cheese."

Current drama under Robert Jones' legal staff: retirement parties, lawyers goofing off, and now everyone's gotta check in/out like some 5th grader

If Robert Jones was a teacher, his class would be out of control. Half the class would be absent (mentally or physically), and the other half would be on Ritalin. In any event, there would be absolutely no instruction taking place because teacher failed.

From what I hear, The Joke Robert Jones is now making everyone under his thumb check in & out because of individual time abusers. In maintaining the DLSE practice of failed management, Robert Jones will now punish everyone in class instead of those that broke the rules. I'm not surprised that this was the management solution he picked to solve the employee problem; he's not smart (remember, he's connected), and it's easier to make everyone suffer rather than dealing with the individual. Way to piss off & antagonize the staff, Jonesy: bravo!

In other news, some career-ladder invited Jonesy to Anne's retirement. This is where some lawyers really need some street smarts, as they already have books smarts: these lawyers need to be able to "get" it, and figure things out that are not in a book. This is going to be Anne's day where Anne is celebrated for her loyal service to the public. It's all about Anne; she should have who she wants at her party. It's not required to be politically correct. If all of the DLSE lawyers are there except for Vanessa Holton, John Rea, Anthony Mischel, Richard Munoz, and Robert Jones - then oh well. Anne should not feel uncomfortable at her own party because Jonesy is there. If Jonesy was any kind of a man, then he'd find some excuse not to attend, apologize for his absence, and let her have her party.

lawyer Richard Munoz interviewing Los Angeles staff for upcoming blog lawsuit

If Richard Munoz thought that he was only going to allow his witnesses into court, then he was wrong. Mr. Munoz is making life miserable for those working at the Los Angeles DLSE office, and it's not because of the blog. It's because he's bothering those who do not want to be bothered. When Richard Munoz asks them is they feel like they are going to be retaliated against for testifying, it's because they are afraid of the DLSE retaliating against them. The blogger, by definition, has no power/control over DLSE staff. Historically, those in power do the retaliating, not some idiot blogger. Rupp retaliates against those beneath him, not above him.

Robert Jones and Richard Munoz don't give two sh*ts about DLSE staff; they are only interested in pursuing their vendetta against the blogger. They cannot stand on their own, so they will try and use DLSE staff as their crutches. This tactic sends a horrible message to DLSE staff; I'm already getting word that a certain employee does not want to be in the same room as Lauro Cons and Susan Nakagama on June 4th (I'll give you a hint: they tried to fail her probation). It's got nothing to do with the blog, and everything to do with being among those that tried to get rid of her.

I can only hope that the judge sees through their smoke, and understands how important it is that this blog continue continue to report on their ineffectiveness, their inefficiency, their idiocy, and their practice of fraud, waste, and abuse. Richard Munoz, Greg Rupp, and others caused the operational disruption, if at all. Maybe Robert Jones will serve Richard Munoz & Greg Rupp with adverse action if the facts of the trial so state. It's not like Jones will be fixing the multi-million dollar CMS joke anytime soon.

What still sux about DLSE mis-management that hinders our ability to assist the public

Good management is supposed to make the lives of the rank & file easier so that the rank & file can better do their jobs, which is to assist the public. Instead, DLSE management just makes things worse.

A frustrated gentleman came into the Santa Ana office to file a wage claim. He lives in the Long Beach area, yet worked in the San Bernadino area. The employer was also in the San Bernadino area. What DLSE has failed to do is to post on their website the set of rules that the DLSE uses to direct which office will exercises jurisdiction and receive (& respond to) the wage claim. They post the DLSE offices on the website, but they don't explain our own set of rules in determining jurisdiction. Lupe Almaraz takes time out of his day to draft some never-used medical records policy, and we still can't get the real things we need from management to make the public's lives easier. To make a long story short, the guy left the Santa Ana office with his wage claim that will eventually be processed in San Bernadino.

Oh yeah, by the way, you can upload the vacation, overtime, and commission wage claim attachments to the website whever you're done doing nothing.

Part of the reason why DLSE management is so interested in this blog is because they are so friggin' clueless as to what's going on in their own office. Now, if they could only get off their lazy asses and start making things better so that the public is more efficiently served.

Changes in the Los Angeles DLSE office

The politics seemed to heat up a while back. An employee working for Susan Nakagama and Lauro Cons (MG) was being considered to fill the AB633 vacancy working under TK. From what I've been told, Susan Nakagama wanted to know who was trying to persuade MG to leave Susan's control. In the end-Stephanie was pulled from Henry's enforcement unit and transferred to TK, thus weakening Henry's ability to do his job. Did Greg screw Henry over? It's not like Greg Rupp filled those vacancies that left Henry hanging. I bet Greg will try to put that problem onto Henry and make Henry spend all that time trying to find good candidates for the job.

They also took away Alma Venable from Henry's unit, where she was transferred to Long Beach to work under Julie Tarazon, a faithful loyalist to Susan Nakagama. Previously, it was rumored that Alma Venable and Susan Nakagama were buddy-buddy & worked together a long time ago at EDD. This is probably Greg's way to sticking it to Henry, even though Henry's enforcement stats keep Greg from looking like a jackass.

Greg Rupp seems to not give a sh*t about anything but Greg Rupp, and his actions as an ineffective Assistant Chief merely reflect what isn't there. Ask the top DLSE peace officer Greg Rupp how many criminal filings his peace officers have filed with the courts in the last 36 months? That's right. Greg's peace officer stats are a total joke because Greg's a total joke of a manager...fish stink from the head.

The blog lawsuit & its taxpayer costs...after all, it's not Robert Jones' money...it's the taxpayers, so he can spend as much of it as he wants...

#1) Had the chance to settle in June, 2006. They offered the blogger a month's pay for the blogger's resignation (that was reasonable, wasn't it?).

#2) Had the chance to settle in February, 2007. Again, the DLSE offered the blogger a month's pay for the blogger's resignation.

#3) The DLSE is prepared to march themselves right off a cliff on June 4th. In order to trample upon the US Constitution, they will desparately try to show an office disruption, thereby needing a judge to decide that the First Amendment must not be invoked.

Well, it seems intentional that during the course of Lee Pearson's investigation, as initiated by boss Greg Rupp, they deliberately avoided in investigating the actual stuff that hurts the taxpayers:
like Jones sticking it to the working Californian with his meal & rest periods interpretation, until the courts told him that he was wrong,

like CMS & the millions involved with that abortion,

like no safety barrier for the employees in Santa Ana,

like Greg Rupp costing the DLSE $$$ in going after someone (Rowene) who filed a workers comp claim,

like Susan Nakagama & Lauro Cons & how they systematically tried to reject someone from probation (another person who previously filed a workers comp claim),

like Abby Calva/Victor Jurado/Anthony Mischel going after another DLSE employee who filed a workers comp claim[the one they booted-but returned after DPA reinstated her],

like Greg Rupp & his DLSE peace officers being paid a sh*tload of money in salary & benefits but they can't show sh*t for criminal filings,

like how the DLSE failed completely in their DLC III (almost everyone got the same score) and DLC IV (almost everyone failed) examinations,

like the way the DLSE handled David Dorame's rise to position of Executive Director of EEEC, despite top peace officer & Assistant Chief Greg Rupp's previous background investigation of David Dorame, and

like the metaphorical castration of the DLSE's Public Works unit, and how Assistant Chief Greg Rupp gutted it, coincidentally during the same time period of his guns & butter republican administration.

These are just some of the DLSE highlights that they've decided not to investigate. Like I've always said, these malfeasants won't initiate an investigation that will cause themselves harm, but any perceived tresspass against their posse will result in an immediate negligent investigation. If Robert Jones cannot comprehend the meal & rest period wage/penalty concept, then how can this ass-clown guy understand the off-duty, anonymous, free speech? This is the same ass-clown guy that is bypassing the whole 1-year Labor Commissioner senate-confirmation process by indefinitely collecting his "Acting" Labor Commissioner paycheck. This guy's not credible.

Under the command of Chief Desk Donkey Acting Labor Commissioner Robert Jones, the DLSE fails to prepare its personnel for promotions

I assume that part of the job of DLSE is to make sure that employement vacancies (within DLSE) are filled in a reasonable amount of time. Now from time to time, the DLSE is lucky enough to have a Denise Padres fill its ranks. But then again, for every Denise Padres there are a dozen Susan Nakagamas.

I guess that the flunkies working under Robert Jones (or at the direction of Robert Jones) learned their lesson from the DLC III exam debacle. At the DLC III exam, the DLSE passed most everyone. Now, it seems that mostly everyone failed the DLC IV exam.

Almost everyone discussing these results think it was rigged...that the DLSE knew who they wanted to promote before anyone sat down to the examination. That's a pretty pessimistic crowd, and judgun by the results of the DLC IV exam...fairly realistic. What makes this recent DLC IV exam a joke is that: 1) the exam should have idenitifed the best-qualified canididates and it didn't, 2) the DLSE's track record for bullsh*t promotions stemming from lame-ass exam questions once again keeps the incompetent power structure in place, and 3) the DLSE doesn't know sh*t about grooming any competent people for promotion, unless their prize candidate suffers from a combination of cranial-rectal inversion & gluteus-kissus.

Why can't DLSE Acting Labor Commissioner Robert Jones bring taxpayer-paid, several million dollar+ CMS to life?

Is it because CMS operability has nothing to do with service to the taxpayer? Is it because its function was not to service the taxpayer, but to service the bank accounts of the contracts involved? Excuse after delay after excuse after delay is the only thing that spews from the piehole of Robert Jones, the very same DLSE Acting Labor Commissioner that couldn't figure out that meal & rest periods were wages. He's so smart that he needed the California Supreme Court to tell him that meal & rest periods were not penalties. The line forms here: whores for corporate interests to the right, public servants to assist the public to the left.

What if he wasn't incompetent? After all, he is a lawyer; Vick Bradshaw put him in charge after Donna Dell. What if he was smart enough to know that meal & rest periods were really wages, but he intentionally decided to screw over the taxpayer with that worthless 'meal & rest periods are penalties' song & dance, until decided otherwise? It's almost the same thing that Vick Bradshaw did with Livadas. These political appointees bend over for special interests & f*ck up DLSE policies until the courts fix it...because people like Jones & Bradshaw don't win these things in court.

What do you think Jones' position is with meal & rest periods? Did he intentionally screw over the taxpayers, until the California Supreme Court decided otherwise? Or was he too stupid to figure it out on his own, until the California Supreme Court told him how his agency must enforce the labor laws?

Fraud, waste & abuse. The California Supreme Court has to tell this guy how to do his job, and we're supposed to "accept" this guy's excuses about that multi-million dollar CMS waste of taxpayer funds?

What the DLSE really hopes to gain from the blogger they want the blogger's sources so more retaliation can begin

The blogger has been deposed by the DLSE. The DLSE, in their infinite wisdom, also deposed one of their very own employees. Typically, the DLSE only needs to depose adversarial subjects (like the blogger); otherwise, the DLSE would just ask their own employees some questions without running up attorneys' & court reporter's fees. Judging by the questions asked & the direction the DLSE had hoped for, it seems that the DLSE seems hell-bent on finding out the sources of information so they can begin their retaliation against those who had dared to speak the truth.

It also seems that they really don't give a sh*t about the blog, but they really give a sh*t about who's talking to the blogger. How many more taxpayer dollars must be spent by the DLSE to deal with this blog, versus the millions of dollars that are being wasted on that sh*tty CMS program the DLSE is shoving down everyone's throats? The Santa Ana office? Still no safety barrier...just a lame, monthly handjob progress update.

When Chief Desk Donkey Acting Labor Commissioner Robert Jones has no taxpayer fiscal accountability, then he's free to spend the public's money like a drunken sailor. It appears that he has no internal stop controls within him that might whisper, "this is not good for the people of California-so don't do it." This ass-clown guy could have settled with the blogger in June-2006, but Jones seems to think that intimidation and retaliation are positive character traits (maybe at his trailer park, but not in public service). Jones had a second opportunity to have settled with the blogger in February-2007, but Jones' decision just came across as just some *sshole trying to intimidate some idiot blogger.

Well, June 4th will be here sooner than later. I have no doubt that Robert Jones will walk his previous path and will continue to make bad decisions on behalf of California taxpayers that reflect his abuse of authority, waste taxpayer dollars, and perpetuate his fraud upon California by not having the decency to be judged by the Senate confirmation process (yet remaining in his cowardly capacity as "Acting" Labor Commissioner).

Participate in a survey of the DLSE Acting Labor Commissioner's meal & rest period views...what do you think?

The California Supreme Court recently decided that meal & rest periods were wages, not penalties. Which describes the position of Robert Jones?
	DLSE Acting Labor Commissioner Robert Jones was too stupid to comprehend the concept of meal & rest periods. He should give his paycheck to the court.
	DLSE Acting Labor Commissioner Robert Jones knew that meal & rest periods were wages: he intentionally screwed over the working Californian.
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