Sanford v. Thor Indus., Inc.
Sanford v. Thor Indus., Inc.
Opinion of the Court
This matter comes before the Court on a Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 25] filed by Defendants Thor Industries, Inc., and DS Corp., d/b/a/ Crossroads RV ("the Defendants"). The Plaintiff, Jason Sanford, filed his Complaint [ECF No. 1] on April 13, 2016, asserting claims for failure to accommodate in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), wrongful termination, retaliation in violation of the ADA and Title VII, and intentional and/or negligent infliction of emotional distress.
FACTUAL BACKGROUND
The Plaintiff began working for Crossroads, a recreational vehicle (RV) manufacturer, in May 2013. Initially, the Plaintiff assisted in assembling the floors of RV units, including installing wiring, connecting tanks, laying carpeting, and installing linoleum. The Plaintiff later became a "midline reworker" and eventually a trimmer. As a trimmer, the Plaintiff primarily installed trim above and inside cabinets and around the door casing, which required the Plaintiff to hold the trim with one hand and install it with the other hand. The Plaintiff would have to carry a ladder between units, "nailers" for securing the trim, and bundles of trim.
On October 3, 2013, the Plaintiff was injured while installing trim around a door casing when another employee kicked open the door, smashing the Plaintiff's wrist. The Plaintiff filed a worker's compensation occupational injury report and claim the day of the injury. According to the Plaintiff, his supervisor forced him to work for the remainder of the day. The Plaintiff also claims that, upon returning to work the next day, his supervisor threatened to fire him if he went to the plant manager to seek medical attention.
The Plaintiff was treated at Parkview Total Health on October 4, 2013, where he received medical restrictions that did not allow any use of his right arm or hand. The Plaintiff visited a doctor on October 8, 2013, where his wrist was placed in a splint for two weeks. Eventually the Plaintiff scheduled surgery for his wrist on November 20, 2013.
Prior to his surgery, the Plaintiff returned to Crossroads where he was given light duty work such as cleaning bathrooms, *942picking up screws around the facility, and taking off electrical outlets, receptacles, and door casings; however, the Plaintiff insisted that he was unable to complete any of these duties due to his medical restrictions. While taking off receptacles and door casings, multiple wood doors fell on top of him, which, the Plaintiff asserts, further exacerbated his wrist injury.
On November 20, 2013, the Plaintiff underwent an arthroscopic debridement surgery on his wrist. He was not permitted to return to work until December 2, 2013, and he was not permitted to use his right arm, hand, or wrist. At that time, the Plaintiff was given light duty office work, which involved preparing new-hire packets, putting stickers on those packets, and stuffing envelopes. According to the Plaintiff, when he expressed concern with his ability to perform this work, he was met with sarcastic comments and threats of termination. This work assignment lasted until December 20, 2013, which was the last day the Plaintiff performed any work for Crossroads and went on medical leave. Thereafter, the Plaintiff claims he was subjected to verbal abuse when he went to pick up his paychecks.
On February 20, 2014, the Plaintiff's physician determined that the Plaintiff was not progressing with therapy, his pain was increasing, and his functionality was decreasing. The Plaintiff underwent a second surgery on June 27, 2014, at which point he was told he could not return to work until July 7, 2014, and that it could be one to three years before he could return to work. As of October 1, 2014, the Plaintiff's physician still had not released him to return to work, and the physician's notes indicated that the Plaintiff's "right grip/grasp was nonfunctional and task could not be progressed." A Work Rehab Progress Report dated October 28, 2014, reflected the same.
Although there was communication between Crossroads and the Plaintiff regarding the status of his medical condition, there was no discussion about any potential accommodations that would allow the Plaintiff to return to work with his medical restrictions. On January 7, 2015, the medical case management firm overseeing the Plaintiff's medical leave issued a closure report stating that the Plaintiff's treating physician concluded that the Plaintiff had reached maximum medical improvement and assigned him permanent restrictions. The Plaintiff was terminated that same day.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
Summary judgment is proper where the evidence of record shows that there is no genuine issue of material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett ,
*943ANALYSIS
A. Failure to Accommodate
The Plaintiff argues that Crossroads failed to accommodate his disability, in violation of the ADA. To state a claim for failure to accommodate under the ADA, "a plaintiff must show that: (1) he is a qualified individual with a disability; (2) the employer was aware of [his] disability; and (3) the employer failed to reasonably accommodate the disability." Bunn v. Khoury Enter., Inc. ,
1. Qualified Individual with a Disability
It is well-established that the ADA protects only a qualified individual with a disability. See Basith v. Cook County,
"The term essential functions means the fundamental job duties of the employment position the individual with a disability holds or desires."
The Plaintiff asserts that with reasonable accommodation, he could still perform the trimmer position. The parties dispute which functions are essential to the trimmer position. Crossroads claims that the essential functions of the position include pushing and pulling for two hours every shift and lifting zero to five pounds for two hours every shift. The lifting requirements include lifting a nailer, a ladder or step stool, and bundles of trim. The nailers at issue weigh up to four pounds, the ladders and step stools weigh up to eight pounds, and the typical bundle of trim weighs up to ten pounds. The Plaintiff's permanent medical restrictions limit him to lifting two pounds with his right hand.
The Plaintiff argues that he would have been able to perform the trimmer job with reasonable accommodation. For example, *944he argues that he could have used his left hand to handle much of the pushing, pulling, and lifting requirements. He asserts that he could use his right hand to hold up a piece of trim, which weighed about 10 ounces, and use the nailer with his left hand. He argues that another member of his team could carry the ladders and step stools for him. Further, the amount of trim an employee carried at any given time was up to that employee, so the Plaintiff could simply make more trips with lighter loads.
However, the Plaintiff testified, under oath, that he could not perform this job in light of his permanent lifting restriction. When asked which jobs he thought he could perform, the Plaintiff did not mention the trimmer position and, more importantly, stated that with his restrictions, he could not use a nailer and "wouldn't be able to replace trim and stuff like that." (Sanford Dep. 113:19-114:4, ECF No. 31-1.) Undoubtedly, using a nailer and replacing trim are essential functions of the trimmer position. The Plaintiff cannot now contradict that testimony to withstand summary judgment.
2. Reasonable Accommodation
The ADA defines "reasonable accommodation" as "job restructuring, part-time or modified work schedules, reassignment to a vacant position," and other types of accommodations not relevant here. See Beck v. Univ. of Wis. Bd. of Regents ,
The duty to reassign is not without limits. Dalton v. Subaru-Isuzu Auto., Inc. ,
The Plaintiff argues that, had Crossroads engaged in the requisite interactive *945process to explore possible accommodations, it could have identified vacancies in the positions he asserts he could perform. "To determine the appropriate reasonable accommodation it may be necessary for the [employer] to initiate an informal, interactive process with the qualified individual with a disability in need of the accommodation."
However, even if the Plaintiff proved that Crossroads failed to engage in the interactive process, that is not sufficient to recover under the ADA. He must also show that Crossroads' "failure to engage in an interactive process resulted in a failure to identify an appropriate accommodation." Rehling v. City of Chi. ,
Regardless, whether a position would have opened up in a reasonable amount of time is not the question. The question is whether there was available position at the time the Plaintiff was terminated. See McCreary v. Libbey-Owens-Ford Co. ,
B. Wrongful Discharge
Under Indiana law, an employee has a cause of action against his employer if he is discharged in retaliation for exercising his statutorily-conferred right to seek worker's compensation benefits. Frampton v. Cent. Ind. Gas. Co. ,
1. Rapidity and Proximity in Time
The Plaintiff filed his worker's compensation occupational injury report and claim on October 3, 2013, and he was terminated over a year later in January of 2015. Courts "uniformly hold that the temporal proximity must be very close." Tungjunyatham v. Johanns , No. 1:06-cv-1764,
2. Consistency with the Evidence
The Plaintiff may establish pretext through another avenue under Indiana *947law. To show pretext, the Plaintiff may also show that Crossroads' proffered reason for his termination is patently inconsistent with the evidence before the Court. Crossroads has offered a nondiscriminatory reason for its adverse action, namely that the Plaintiff could not perform the essential functions of the trimmer position or of any other then-vacant position for which the Plaintiff was qualified. Crossroads received numerous reports over the course of the Plaintiff's leave that the Plaintiff could not return to work in any capacity and may not have been able to return to work for one to three years. When the Plaintiff's worker's compensation claim was finally closed, the Plaintiff had a permanent restriction that Crossroads believed precluded the Plaintiff from returning to his position as a trimmer, and Crossroads testified that there were no vacant positions available that it believed the Plaintiff could perform with that permanent restriction. The plant manager testified that at the time of the Plaintiff's termination, he was under the impression that the Plaintiff was unable to use his right arm or hand at all.
The burden is therefore on the Plaintiff to produce evidence that this reason is merely pretextual and that a discriminatory motive was the determining factor. The Plaintiff's opinion with respect to his ability to perform the essential function of any position, even if true in all respects, is insufficient to establish pretext because whether Crossroads' decision was objective, wise, fair, or even correct is not relevant. See Powdertech ,
The Plaintiff has not come forward with evidence that demonstrates that Crossroads did not honestly believe these reasons warranted the Plaintiff's termination. As noted above, the Plaintiff admitted he could not perform the essential functions of the trimmer position. Further, the Plaintiff is unable to meet his burden to show that at the time of his termination, there were vacant positions for which he was qualified and for which he could perform the essential functions.
Courts do "not sit as a super-personnel department that reexamines an entity's business decision." Powdertech ,
C. Retaliation Claims
The Plaintiff alleges that Crossroads retaliated against him in violation of both the ADA and Title VII. Retaliation claims under the ADA and Title VII are analyzed under the same standard. See Buie v. Quad/Graphics, Inc. ,
1. Retaliation Under Title VII
Title VII protects an employee from discrimination when "he has opposed any practice made an unlawful employment practice by this subchapter ...."
The Court first examines whether the Plaintiff engaged in activity protected by Title VII when he complained about the violation of his work restrictions and failure to receive FMLA forms. The Plaintiff's expressed concerns centered around his disability and violation of his work restrictions. However, Title VII does not protect against discrimination based on disability. Thus, the Plaintiff has no recourse under Title VII.
2. Retaliation Under the ADA
The Plaintiff has satisfied the first prong of the retaliation framework under the ADA. "The ADA prohibits a person from discriminating against any individual because such individual has 'opposed any act or practice made unlawful by [the ADA].' " Albiero v. Town of Goodland , No. 4:11-CV-45,
The Court next addresses whether the Plaintiff suffered an adverse employment action. The Plaintiff appears to argue that he suffered multiple adverse employment actions, including being subjected to derogatory and offensive conduct, ridiculed, and eventually terminated. "A cognizable adverse employment action is a 'significant change in employment status, such as hiring, firing, failing to promote, *949reassignment with significantly different responsibilities, or a decision causing a significant change in benefits.' " Chaudhry v. Nucor Steel-Ind. ,
However, the Court's analysis does not end there. The Plaintiff must also show a causal connection between his protected activity and his termination. "A plaintiff demonstrates a causal connection by showing that the defendant 'would not have taken the adverse ... action but for [his] protected activity.' " Baines v. Walgreen Co. ,
Therefore, the Court will grant summary judgment as to the Plaintiff's retaliation claims.
CONCLUSION
For the reasons stated above, the Court GRANTS the Defendants' Motion for Summary Judgment [ECF No. 25]. The Clerk of Court is DIRECTED to enter judgment in favor of the Defendants and against the Plaintiff.
SO ORDERED on February 9, 2018.
The Plaintiff admits that the Defendants are entitled to summary judgment on his claims for intentional and/or negligent infliction of emotional distress. The Court, therefore, will not address these claims.
The Plaintiff argues that he did not admit he could not perform the trimmer position because the relevant questions during his deposition referred to whether he could perform his past job, which included other responsibilities that he could not perform with his medical restrictions. Regardless of the context of the line of questioning the Plaintiff references, elsewhere in his deposition he specifically testified that he would be unable to use a nailer or replace trim.
This is known as the "direct" method of proof. A plaintiff may also show retaliation using the "indirect" method of proof, which requires a plaintiff asserting a retaliation claim to demonstrate that (1) he "engaged in statutorily protected activity"; (2) he "was performing his job satisfactorily" and (3) he "was singled out for an adverse employment action that similarly situated employees who did not engage in protected activity did not suffer." Dickerson v. Bd. of Trs. of Cmty. Coll. Dist. No. 522 ,
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Jason SANFORD v. THOR INDUSTRIES, INC., and DS Corp., d/b/a/ Crossroads RV
- Cited By
- 6 cases
- Status
- Published