In August 2010, the U.S. Department of Labor sanctioned Asian Journal Publications over $500,000 for failing to pay. However, there is now a wide rumor circulating that popular T.V. personality Janelle So, at the direct instigation of her present employer, Balita Media owner Luchie Mendoza, instigated the claim at the Department of Labor.
Janelle So's claim was less than $5,000, but Luchie Mendoza knew it would open a wide investigation of her chief competitor, Asian Journal Publications.
Janelle So used to be a columnist for Asian Journal, and that newspaper sponsored her television program. Luchie Mendoza stole Janelle So from the Asian Journal, and then forced her to make the complaint against her former employer, the Asian Journal.
The authoritative on line newspaper and blog mubuhayradio.com reported on January 27, 2010 that Balita Media obtained U.S. Department of Labor documents that Asian Journal was sanctioned for about $500,000. Balita Media, a direct competitor of Asian Journal, placed the story in its headline that week as well.
However, labor law experts advise at that time Asian Journal would have only been involved in an private administrative proceedings, meaning that only Asian Journal employees affected by the proceeding, including Ms. So, would know about it.
Balita-News.com, an on line newspaper seemingly devoted almost only to writing about Balita Media, reports that Luchie Mendoza also used immigration petitions to force employees to work illegally and to lie under oath, http://goo.gl/H3Tsw. This story relies completely on court documents.
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The Asian Journal Publications, Inc., of Los Angeles, California, filed a complaint today, March 13, 2009, against the Balita Media, Inc., another California corporation. The civil case was filed in the Los Angeles County Superior Court. The complaint has been designated as Case No. BC409636. The complaint is for False and Misleading Advertising, Unfair Competition and Fraudulent Business Acts and Tortious Interference with Prospective Business Advantage. Aside from the plaintiff, the Asian Journal, this website is the first Filipino-American publication to come to know of the suit and to possess a copy of the complaint.
Named also as Defendants are the Verified Audit Circulation, Inc., and DOES 1 through 100 inclusive.
Since the civil case is now sub-judice, the MabuhayRadio.com will not make any comment on the case and it has simply published a copy of the complaint in a PDF format.