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Worker in Stanislaus County fired for medical leave. Now she’s a millionaire
A wrongful termination lawsuit against the Keyes Community Services District, which supplies water to the small Stanislaus County town, cost taxpayers $1.9 million — over half the agency’s yearly budget.
In December, a jury compensated former KCSD employee Joann Sakurada after the district allegedly fired her for taking medical leave for a knee injury.
The award is one of the biggest in Stanislaus County court history, according to Atticus Law Group, the firm representing Sakurada.
“This case underscores the critical importance of California’s employment protections for workers with disabilities and those who require medical leave,” read a statement from Atticus Law Group. “Employers must recognize and respect these rights, and this verdict sends a strong message that no employer is above the law.”
Sakurada was hired as an office assistant by KCSD in 2019. In February 2022, she was forced to go on medical leave for knee reconstructive surgery.
These types of surgeries typically take about six months for a full recovery. However, Sakurada gave her boss a certification from her doctor that said she could go back to work, with some limitations, about four months after her surgery, according to court documents.
Sakurada alleged that her boss, KCSD Administrative Executive Michelle Harris, approved the medical leave but said Sakurada wouldn’t be entitled to health insurance benefits. Harris allegedly told Sakurada that was because she technically would be listed as a terminated employee until she returned.
Harris allegedly said she would still qualify for COBRA — a health insurance provided by the government when an employee is laid off or under other circumstances — and Sakurada could contact her health insurance if she had any questions.
When Sakurada did reach out to her health insurance company, the complaint alleges, she was written up by Harris for violating change of command.
“Not only did (Sakurada) have the right to contact her own medical benefits provider, she was directed to do so by Harris,” the complaint reads. “Thus, (Sakurada) was being disciplined for following the very directive given to her by Harris.”
Harris declined to comment to The Bee.
The complaint then alleges that the day before Sakurada’s surgery, Harris pulled her into a meeting to discuss the surgery while a maintenance worker sat in. Harris reportedly discussed Sakurada’s confidential medical and financial information in front of the maintenance worker.
Four months later, and two days before she was to return to work, Sakurada informed KCSD that she could return to work with some temporary restrictions, such as being able to ice her knee and taking a little more time to go up and down stairs. These restrictions would have lasted only a month and wouldn’t have interfered much with her duties as an office assistant, the complaint alleged.
Instead of allowing Sakurada to return to work, Harris reportedly extended her leave for another month. Sakurada alleged Harris intentionally denied her right to return to work based on her “animus against (Sakurada’s) disability.”
Sakurada then gave Harris an updated medical certificate that said if she wasn’t able to work with restrictions, it would delay her return for another month. Four days later, Sakurada was told she’d been fired.
KCSD’s reason for firing Sakurada was that, as an essential employee, her continued absence created “undue hardship” and “poor performance.”
Sakurada filed a lawsuit against Harris and KCSD in January 2023. Lawsuits are often settled to avoid a jury trial, but KCSD came nowhere close to what Sakurada was seeking.
“We knew we were going to have to try the case on its merits,” said Parisa Khademi, managing partner for Atticus Law Group.
Sakurada’s lawyers did offer to settle for $1.2 million, which would’ve saved taxpayers about $300,000. Three weeks before the case went before a jury, KCSD offered just $25,000 to settle. The case went to trial and Sakurada was awarded $1.5 million. KCSD was also forced to pay Sakurada’s legal fees, which amounted to about $400,000.
“The real shame here is that the District maintained $2.5 million in Employment Practices Liability Insurance, which would have provided insurance coverage for this case,” reads a court document filed by Sakurada’s attorneys. “But, for reasons unknown, the District never tendered this lawsuit as a claim under its insurance policy and when we tendered on their behalf a year later, it was denied.”
Sakurada continues to live and work in Stanislaus County.
This story was originally published July 16, 2025 5:00 PM.
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