Wilson v. Gayfers Montgomery Fair Co.

953 F.Supp. 1415

Jayson L. WILSON, Plaintiff, v. GAYFERS MONTGOMERY FAIR CO., Ron Parrish and Sue Groce, Defendants.

Civil Action No. 95-D-1583-N.

United States District Court, M.D. Alabama, Northern Division.

October 8, 1996.

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Robert J. Varley, Montgomery, AL, for plaintiff.

Joseph T. Carpenter, Nathan C. Prater, Montgomery, AL, for defendants.

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

DE MENT, District Judge.

Before the court is defendants'¹ motion for summary judgment filed July 12, 1996, and brief in support thereof.² Plaintiff, Jayson Wilson, filed his brief in opposition to summary judgment on August 27, 1996. Defendants filed a response thereto on September 6, 1996. After careful consideration of the arguments of counsel, the relevant case law, and the record as a whole, the court finds that the defendants' motion is due to be granted in part and denied in part.

JURISDICTION AND VENUE

Jurisdiction is proper pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331 because plaintiff alleges violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.³ Plaintiff also brings state law claims arising from the same transaction and occurrence as the alleged federal deprivation; therefore, the court may assert supplemental jurisdiction over plaintiff's state law claim. See 28 U.S.C. § 1367(a).⁴ Personal jurisdiction and venue are uncontested.

SUMMARY JUDGMENT STANDARD

On a motion for summary judgment, the court is to construe the evidence and factual inferences arising therefrom in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Adickes v. S.H. Kress & Co., 398 U.S. 144, 157, 90 S.Ct. 1598, 1608, 26 L.Ed.2d 142 (1970). Summary judgment can be entered on a claim only if it is shown "that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). As the Supreme Court has explained the summary judgment standard:

[T]he plain language of Rule 56(c) mandates the entry of summary judgment, after adequate time for discovery and upon motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party's case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial. In such a situation, there can be no genuine issue as to any material fact, since a complete failure of proof concerning an essential element of the non-moving party's case necessarily renders all other facts immaterial.

Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322-23, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2552, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). The trial court's function at this juncture is not "to weigh the evidence and determine the truth of the matter but to determine whether there is a genuine issue for trial." Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249-50, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2511, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986) (citations omitted). A dispute about a material fact is genuine if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct. at 2510; see also Barfield v. Brierton, 883 F.2d 923, 933 (11th Cir.1989).

The party seeking summary judgment has the initial burden of informing the court of the basis for the motion and of establishing, based on relevant "portions of `the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions in the file, together with affidavits, if any,'" that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2552-53. Once this initial demonstration under Rule 56(c) is made, the burden of production, not persuasion, shifts to the nonmoving party. The nonmoving party must "go beyond the pleadings and by [his] own affidavits, or by the `depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file,' designate `specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial.'" Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. at 2553; see also Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(e).

In meeting this burden the nonmoving party "must do more than simply show that there is a metaphysical doubt as to the material facts." Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 1356, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). That party must demonstrate that there is a "genuine issue for trial." Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c); Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 587, 106 S.Ct. at 1356. An action is void of a material issue for trial "[w]here the record taken as a whole could not lead a rational trier of fact to find for the non-moving party." Matsushita, 475 U.S. at 587, 106 S.Ct. at 1356; see also Anderson, 477 U.S. at 249, 106 S.Ct. at 2510-11.

FINDINGS OF FACT

Plaintiff, Jayson Wilson ("Wilson"), was hired in 1983 by Defendant Gayfers Montgomery Fair Co. ("Gayfers") to work as an associate in the stockroom in the Columbus, Georgia, store. Wilson Dep. at 14-15. Wilson became a manager trainee in 1987, and in 1989, he was transferred to the Eastdale Mall store in Montgomery, Alabama, to work as department manager in the men's department. Id. at 16-19. Wilson suffers from an undiagnosed hearing loss, and began wearing a hearing aid for one ear in 1988 and hearing aids for both ears in 1990. Id. at 27-37.

Wilson consistently received good evaluations while he was working at the Columbus store and was never disciplined for any reason. Id. at 44-47. Wilson also received annual salary increases in Columbus and Montgomery, with his last increase in October, 1991.⁵ Id. at 48-49. However, at various times during his employment as a department manager at Gayfers in Montgomery, Wilson received evaluations that were somewhat critical of his work performance. For instance, store manager Neal Doblin ("Doblin") gave Wilson a negative evaluation on September 11, 1991; specifically, Doblin criticized Wilson's habit of changing his work schedule without advising management.⁶ Additionally, after defendant Sue Groce ("Groce") replaced Doblin,⁷ she evaluated Wilson on October 27, 1992, and identified the following five areas of substandard performance: (1) the need to focus on more detail work, (2) the need to develop teamwork and leadership, (3) improvement on follow-through and elimination of procrastination, (4) improvement of productivity, and (5) the need to dress more professionally. Ex. 4, Defs.' Br. in Supp. of Mot. for Summ.J. Groce also told Wilson that he would not be receiving a raise for the 1992 year and that in order for him to continue working at Gayfers he would need to improve in these areas. Wilson Dep. at 126, 128.

Groce and defendant Ron Parrish ("Parrish"), the store's operation manager, conducted a follow-up evaluation of Wilson's job performance on February 10, 1993. Id. at 132-44; see also Ex. 5, Defs.' Br. in Supp. of Mot for Summ.J. During this evaluation, Groce told Wilson that he had failed to correct the problems they had discussed in October, 1992, and she informed him that he would have to make a complete "turn around" within the next 30 days or he would be terminated. Wilson Dep. at 132-44; Groce Dep. at 176. Furthermore, if he so desired, he would be allowed to leave work, with pay, to search for another job. Wilson Dep. at 132-44. Wilson requested Groce allow him until February 18, 1993, to consider the options she had presented at the evaluation. Wilson Dep., Ex. 5. On March 17, 1993, Wilson submitted a written resignation to Parrish. Id. at 94-98.

Groce reports that from 1992 to February 1993, she took disciplinary action against two other department managers, Wayne Merritt ("Merritt") and Shirley Benbo ("Benbo"). Groce Dep. at 63-71. Using the same evaluation form with Merritt that she had used with Wilson, she provided a similar critique of Merritt's performance. Id. at 63-65. Merritt, however, was not terminated, because he was able to improve his department's performance to Groce's satisfaction. Id. at 64. Benbo was terminated after she violated company policy for either the second or third time regarding mark down procedures. Id. at 71. Groce also reports that she allowed two other department managers, Peggy Bracket ("Bracket") and Susan Godwin ("Godwin"), who were reportedly suffering from "deficiencies, to step down to the position of "sales associate." Id. at 67-69. Of the five "disciplined" department managers, only Benbo and Wilson were terminated.

After Wilson submitted his resignation, he received reports from various co-workers that Groce and Parrish had mocked Wilson's hearing disability.⁸ Id. at 68-82. As a result, Wilson began to suspect that he had been mistreated by Groce and Parrish because he had a hearing disability. Id. at 157-58. In support of Wilson's claims, Bernard MacKenzie, a former co-worker of Wilson, has testified that he overheard Parrish and Groce "mocking" Wilson's hearing problem and that they were always "riding" Wilson while he was department manager. MacKenzie Aff. ¶¶ 4, 5. Similarly, Luther Hicks, another former co-worker, also testified that he heard Parrish "on numerous occasions make intentional derogatory remarks regarding [Wilson's] hearing disability and his hearing aids" and that "[t]hese comments were often made in the presence of other employees." Hicks Aff. at ¶ 5.

On December 12, 1995, Wilson commenced this action, alleging that Gayfers, Groce, and Parrish violated the ADA and requesting both compensatory and punitive damages. See Pl.'s Compl. Wilson also brought forth pendent state claims for the tort of outrage, intentional infliction of emotional distress, and for conspiracy to defraud. Id. Defendants have moved for summary judgment of all counts.

DISCUSSION

I. Americans with Disabilities Act

The Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq., provides that "[n]o covered entity shall discriminate against a qualified individual with a disability because of the disability of such individual."⁹ 42 U.S.C. § 12112(a). Under the ADA, the plaintiff may...