Wynn v. Paragon Systems, Inc.

301 F.Supp.2d 1343

Patricia D. WYNN, Plaintiff, v. PARAGON SYSTEMS, INC., Defendant.

No. CIV.A. CV203-019.

United States District Court, S.D. Georgia, Brunswick Division.

January 26, 2004.

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Michael L. Edwards, Weiner, Shearouse, Weitz, Greenberg & Shawe, Savannah, GA, for Plaintiff.

R. Jason D'Cruz, Morris, Manning & Martin, LLP, Atlanta, GA, for Defendant.

ORDER

ALAIMO, District Judge.

Plaintiff, Patricia D. Wynn, filed the captioned case against Defendant, Paragon Systems, Inc. ("Paragon"), on January 28, 2003. Wynn sued Paragon for discrimination based on sex and retaliation, in violation of her rights under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e-2000e-17. ("Title VII").

Presently before the Court is Defendant's motion for summary judgment. After summarizing the facts of the case, the Court will review Defendant's motion and brief, along with Wynn's responsive brief, and all the supporting documents in the record, to determine that Defendant's motion will be GRANTED.

BACKGROUND

Paragon is a security management company providing law enforcement services, surveillance, identification and authorization checks, and perimeter, building, and vehicle security checks for the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center ("FLETC") in Brunswick, Georgia. FLETC operates as a training facility for law enforcement personnel of numerous federal agencies. Paragon has held a government contract to provide security services to FLETC since October 1, 2000. At FLETC, Paragon operates three continuous shifts, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Under its contract with the government, Paragon is required to employ a Project Manager, Assistant Project Manager, and three Safety Officers. The Project Manager supervises all security personnel. Paragon's security personnel must carry pistols while on duty. Security personnel include Shift Supervisors, or "Sergeants," and security officers. Sergeants supervise security officers assigned to their shift. Paragon has three full-time Shift Supervisors. During the relevant time period, Jason Wilkes was the Project Manager, and the Shift Supervisors were Sergeants Wynn, Robinson, and Saddler.

At FLETC, Paragon communicates with its employees on a daily basis using a "Pass Down Log" ("PDL"). The PDL consists of a series of memoranda giving instructions from management to security personnel. It contains information about specific Paragon policies and procedures. Shift Supervisors are responsible for reading any new entries in the PDL at the beginning of each shift to the officers they supervise, and enforcing the rules set out in the PDL.

Any Paragon employee may issue a "Statement." A Statement describes a workplace incident, and may be used to support disciplinary action by the company. Only the Project Manager is authorized to discipline employees.

When Paragon obtained the government contract at FLETC, it hired Wynn as the Night Shift Supervisor. For the ten years prior to Paragon's obtaining the FLETC contract, Wynn served as a security officer and supervisor for two other security contractors at FLETC. Wynn served as Paragon's Night Shift Supervisor until June 1, 2001, in total, a period of eight months. During Wynn's employ, John Robinson was the Day Shift Supervisor, and Sergeant Saddler was the Evening Shift Supervisor. Robinson was also a Paragon Safety Officer, which required additional responsibilities regarding workplace safety.

At 8:00 A.M., on April 20, 2001, Project Manager Wilkes held a Sergeants' meeting, immediately following Plaintiff's shift. Wynn and Robinson attended, but Saddler was not required to attend. Instead, Saddler was given a handout the night before, describing the purpose of the meeting. Saddler was excused from attending the meeting because he held another job. Wynn complained to Wilkes that she was required to attend the meeting, while Saddler was not.

On April 10, 2001, Paragon issued a Gun Clearing Procedure PDL. On April 22, 2001, Richie Jones, a male Paragon security officer, violated this policy, and Wilkes disciplined him. On April 24, 2001, Paragon issued another PDL indicating that all security personnel must have a co-worker observe the loading and unloading of their weapons. On May 7, 2001, Robinson reported Wynn for violating this latter Gun Clearing Procedure PDL. On that day, following her normal shift, Wynn unloaded her gun without a co-worker present. Robinson, in an adjoining area, observed and heard the circumstances surrounding the violation and issued a Statement. Wynn admitted that she violated the procedures, but complained that Robinson's reporting of the incident was harassing and disrespectful. Wynn believed that Robinson was monitoring her activities more closely than he monitored the officers he was responsible for supervising. Wilkes disciplined Wynn for her violation, issuing a written reprimand. This was the only time Paragon disciplined Wynn.

Wynn and Robinson had difficulty getting along during most of Plaintiff's employment with Paragon. Paragon had another PDL explaining that the security vehicles had to be turned over to the next shift in a clean and serviceable manner ("Shift Turnover Protocol"). Paragon issued Shift Turnover Protocols related to vehicle cleanliness on February 21, 2001, April 9, 2001, and April 20, 2001. When the vehicles were turned over to the next shift, all trash was to be removed and the floor mats were to be taken out of the car to shake off any loose dirt that may have accumulated during the previous shift. Because Robinson's shift followed Wynn's, they had regular altercations about the cleanliness of the vehicles that Wynn turned over to Robinson. Wynn testified that she and Robinson would regularly get into yelling altercations regarding the vehicles' cleanliness. According to Wynn, these incidents lasted ten to fifteen minutes each, and occurred two or three times per week, from February through May of 2001.

On May 11, 2001, Wynn complained to Wilkes about her disputes with Robinson concerning the Shift Turnover Protocol and the gun clearing incident. Wilkes explained that all Shift Supervisors were required by company policy to turn over clean vehicles on change of shift, and that Robinson, as a Safety Officer, was required to report all safety violations. On May 16, 2001, Wynn requested that Wilkes demote her to the Day Shift Gate 4 Officer position, knowing that Robinson supervised that shift. Wilkes asked her why she would request a demotion to this position. Wynn's explanation did not clearly address why she would ask to work under the direct supervision of a co-worker with whom she had admitted personality conflicts. Following this discussion, Wynn requested a meeting with Charlie Allbritten, Paragon's Director of Security Operations.

Wynn met with Allbritten on May 30, 2001. Wynn accused Robinson of harassing her during this meeting, citing Robinson's demand that Wynn clean the vehicle floor mats at the end of her shift, and his act of reporting her violation of the Gun Clearing Procedure PDL. Wynn again requested a demotion to the Gate 4 Officer position. When Allbritten asked for an explanation, she stated that she wanted to apply for that position because of the emotional stress she was under in her current position. Allbritten asked Wynn why she would want to work directly under the person whom she felt was harassing her. Again, her explanation was not clear: she stated that although she had never worked a day shift at the gate, she believed that Robinson did not supervise employees under his authority at the gate closely. Allbritten informed Wynn that Paragon would consider demoting her if she were having trouble handling her responsibilities as a Shift Supervisor, but would not demote her for the reasons that she had stated.

Wynn also claims that discrimination occurred when Paragon Assistant Project Manager Adam Austin rejected her requested vacation dates. This May 29, 2001, request for time off from June 15-24, 2001, was rejected because two other security personnel would be off at that time. Wynn was told to choose vacation days that were not already full.

Plaintiff also alleges that she attempted to speak with Allbritten about her problems with Robinson by phoning Allbritten in April and May of 2001, but that Allbritten did not return Plaintiff's calls. Plaintiff does not explain how this alleged failure to return her phone calls or meet with her until May 30, 2001, constituted discrimination against her.

On May 31, 2001, after seeing her name on the work schedule still as a Shift Supervisor, Plaintiff decided to resign. On June 1, 2001, Wynn tendered a letter of resignation to Paragon, effective June 15, 2001. Paragon decided not to allow her to work out her requested notice period, and instead determined that the termination of employment should take effect immediately. However, Paragon did pay Wynn through June 10, 2001. Wynn asserts that Paragon's decision to not allow her to work out this two week notice period constituted an unjust termination, in retaliation for her complaints about Robinson.

In September 2001, Wynn filed a charge of discrimination against Paragon with the EEOC. In her charge, she alleged that Paragon discriminated against her based on her sex and in retaliation for statutorily protected activity.

On January 28, 2003, Wynn filed the present action. Wynn sued for sex discrimination, retaliation, negligent hiring and retention, negligent failure to train and supervise,¹ and attorney's fees. On October 21, 2003, Wynn voluntarily dismissed her negligent hiring claim. The claims before the Court on Paragon's motion for summary judgment, then, are the Title VII discrimination claims based on sex and retaliation, and the derivative state law tort claim for negligent retention of Robinson after it had knowledge of Wynn's complaints against...