Suit Says Nissan Fired Pair Over Privacy Issue

Two former employees of Carson-based Nissan Motor Corp. USA have filed a lawsuit accusing the local auto maker of invading their privacy, alleging that they lost their jobs after a manager eavesdropped on their electronic mail messages.

The suit, filed Wednesday in Los Angeles Superior Court and amended Friday, seeks unspecified damages for two computer systems specialists employed at Nissan’s Infiniti Support Group division in Carson. The plaintiffs--Bonita B. Bourke of Redondo Beach and Rhonda L. Hall of Bellflower--contend that they were illegally discharged and denied their constitutional right to privacy.

Nissan on Monday denied the charges, calling them “unfounded.” Nissan also disputed one of the termination claims, contending that Bourke resigned.

The plaintiffs’ lawyer, Noel Shipman, said Bourke was told she would be fired unless she resigned. Hall was fired outright, he said. Shipman said Nissan was retaliating against the pair for filing an invasion of privacy complaint with Nissan’s Human Resources Department on Dec. 28.

Shipman said the women, who used the electronic mail system to keep track of the needs of Nissan dealers, occasionally sent personal messages to dealerships. The suit maintains that a Nissan manager intercepted their personal messages and threatened to dismiss Bourke and Hall. One of the messages was critical of a Nissan manager, Shipman said.