When Tarlochan Sidhu was laid off by Fletco Co. following a workers’ comp leave, the union grieved his termination and sought arbitration as called for in the union contract. After Fletco refused to arbitrate on the grounds that the contract didn’t apply to the dispute, the union sued to enforce the CBA. Fletco asked the court to dismiss the lawsuit because Sidhu hadn’t exhausted his remedies under the contract prior to filing a lawsuit, including arbitrating the grievance. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has now ruled that Sidhu’s lawsuit may proceed, stating that an employee is not required to exhaust grievance procedures before bringing a lawsuit if the employer has repudiated the procedures—as Fletco did by refusing to arbitrate.