Our Board of Directors
Francisco Covarrubias manages the community organizing collaborative and supports multiple initiatives within the CCF’s housing team, including the Program Related Investment Program, the Accelerating Permanent Supportive Housing Program, and the housing provider collaborative.
Prior to joining CCF, he directed the Tenant Organizing team at Inner City Law Center that empowered thousands of tenants to speak out against the slum conditions caused by unscrupulous landlords. Previously, Covarrubias worked on several labor organizing campaigns with workers in the service industry. He brings to CCF deep knowledge of government and constituent services, having worked for a state legislator. Covarrubias earned a BA in sociology from Pomona College. He is a native Angeleno and enjoys exploring the many wonders of the city.
Michael Morrison Esq., has dedicated his legal career to protecting constitutional and statutory rights, focusing on labor and employment law, civil rights, constitutional law, appellate law, and sexual abuse cases. He has argued and briefed multiple cases resulting in published decisions, including Macias v. County of Los Angeles and Blankenhorn v. City of Orange. As a member of the U.S. Supreme Court Bar, he has contributed to numerous briefs and petitions, co-authoring the merits brief in Muehler v. Mena (2005). His extensive experience in class action litigation includes representing plaintiffs in high-profile cases, such as "The Clergy Cases," which resulted in a historic $660 million settlement for sexual abuse victims.
Michael has successfully secured significant settlements in wage and hour misclassification cases, constitutional class actions, and workplace discrimination lawsuits. Notable settlements include multimillion-dollar cases against AT&T, Bunim-Murray, and toll road agencies, benefiting class members with financial compensation and injunctive relief. He also represented the Los Angeles Times newsroom in an Equal Pay Act class action, securing a $3 million settlement, and played a key role in a $7 million data breach class action against UKG, Inc. A UCLA School of Law graduate, Michael has also been committed to civil rights education, previously teaching undergraduates and working with the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights under Judge Cruz Reynoso.
Pamela Chandran Esq. is in-house counsel at 
United Nurses Association of California (UNAC). Previously, she spent several years in-house representing registered nurses in the private sector and was Partner at a union-side firm. She represents unions and workers, appears frequently before the National Labor Relations Boards and in arbitration, and has extensive experience in collective bargaining. She frequently speaks at labor-related conferences, and is the union-side editor of Chapter 12 of Developing Labor Law: Recognition and Withdrawal of Recognition Without an Election. Before law school, she worked for several years for unions representing health care workers.
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Our Team
Tania Millan is the Executive Director of the Wage Justice Center (WJC), bringing over a decade of experience in the nonprofit sector and a deep commitment to social justice. As the first college graduate in her family, she is passionate about advocating for underrepresented communities, a dedication reflected in her academic journey from Pasadena City College to earning a Bachelor's Degree in Sociology with a focus on law and society from California State University, Los Angeles. Her engagement in social justice began through volunteering and deepened during her time at Instituto de Educación Popular del Sur de California (IDEPSCA) and Unemployed Workers United, where she developed expertise in leveraging technology and grassroots organizing to support workers. Inspired by her mother’s leadership in organizing Pasadena street vendors, Tania understands the transformative power of community movements. She is proud to lead WJC in its mission to combat wage theft, believing that lasting change comes from empowering individuals and strengthening worker protections.
Paula Pearlman, Esq. is the Legal Director of the Wage Justice Center, bringing four decades of experience in government service, nonprofit legal work, and private practice. She has been lead counsel in groundbreaking cases addressing disability rights, discrimination, access to healthcare, immigrants’ rights, special education in custodial settings, employment, and housing discrimination. Notably, she secured over $1.4 billion in sidewalk and curb ramp repairs for 280,000 people with mobility disabilities (Willits v. City of Los Angeles), blocked the closure of Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Hospital (Rodde v. Bontá), and ensured accessibility improvements in Los Angeles courthouses (Miles v. County of Los Angeles). Her work also extended to juvenile justice and immigrant rights, preventing the coercion of Salvadoran asylum seekers into waiving their rights (Orantes-Hernandez v. Thornburgh).
Beyond litigation, Paula is committed to education and public advocacy on civil rights and employment law. She has taught courses on disability rights and special education law at Loyola Law School and Southwestern Law School. A UCLA and Southwestern Law School graduate, she has received numerous accolades for her advocacy, including recognition as a Trial Lawyer of the Year Finalist by the Public Justice Foundation and a Civil Rights Hero by the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing. Prior to joining the Wage Justice Center, she held leadership roles at the California Civil Rights Department and the Disability Rights Legal Center, where she served as Executive Director. A proficient Spanish speaker, Paula continues her lifelong dedication to fighting for justice and equality.
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Daisy Lopez Cruz is the Human Resources Manager at the Wage Justice Center (WJC), where she has helped build a dedicated team for the "Wages for Rent" project and fosters a collaborative work environment. Before joining WJC, she worked as an Administrative Assistant at Unemployed Workers United (UWU), where she developed policies and processes to streamline operations for a nationwide virtual staff. Committed to social change, Daisy has a background in behavioral therapy and social work, previously serving special needs children and families through the Department of Children and Family Services. She holds a B.A. in Psychology from UC Berkeley and is actively expanding her expertise in human resources to further support WJC’s mission.