Moffitt v. United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corp.
Moffitt v. United States Shipping Board Emergency Fleet Corp.
Opinion of the Court
Opinion by
Plaintiff sued for a balance of wages claimed pursuant to a regulation of defendant prescribing for its employees what it called “leave of absence with pay.” He was employed on September 28, 1918, to work at Philadelphia. At that date the regulation provided that “employees may be granted leave of absence with pay at the rate of 2% days for each calendar month of service.” On January 22, 1919, the first change in the regulation during plaintiff’s employment was made, limiting such leave to “30 days for each service year,” and providing that “unconsumed leave with pay that has accrued within a given service year, may be granted in the next or succeeding service years, in addition to the leave with pay which has accrued in such succeeding year or years, provided that the sum total granted at any one time shall not exceed 30 days.” On October 10, 1919, a second change was made providing that “neither annual nor sick leave shall be cumulative beyond each calendar year.” This was modified by a third change
On November 6, 1920, a fourth modification was announced that “leave not granted during one calendar year will not be carried over into the succeeding year,” and on November 19, 1920, by a fifth change, the fourth modification was rescinded. On December 9, 1921, a sixth modification was announced providing “No annual leave is cumulative beyond the end of any calendar year.”
It will be observed, therefore, that when the employment began, the leave was at the rate of 2% days a calendar month with no maximum; the first change established a maximum of 30 days per service year, with the right to take unconsumed leave in succeeding years, not exceeding 30 days at a time. On October 10, 1919, and on November 6, 1920, changes were announced requiring the leave to be taken during the calendar year but in both instances, this change was rescinded within a short time as has appeared, leaving effective for present consideration the change of November 13, 1919.
We are concerned, then, with the effort of December 9, 1921, (the third during plaintiff’s employment) to limit enjoyment of earned leave to the calendar year. On December 20, 1921, plaintiff resigned. He avers he set “forth in accordance with the rules and regulations of the defendant corporation then in force and effect, the effective date of his resignation as the eighth of February, A. D. 1922, to wit: thirty (30) working days after the date of actual separation from the employ of the defendant corporation, the 30th day of. December^ A. D. 1921.” The resignation was accepted and plaintiff was paid up to December 30th, the defendant declining to pay for any part of the period of thirty days’ cumu
This suit is for his wages for that period of thirty days, upon the ground that he had earned that leave with pay, with the right to take it at will. The affidavit of defense admits the facts here stated. Judgment for want of a sufficient affidavit was entered.
Briefly, the defense alleged was (1) the hiring of plaintiff was not for the defendant but as agent for the United States; (2) it was discretionary with defendant to grant or refuse leave with pay and accordingly there was no liability; (3) the suit is substantially one against the United States and therefore not within the jurisdiction of the court.
The first and third points are without merit under Sloan Ship Yards Corporation v. U. S. Shipping Board, 42 Sup. Ct. Rep. 386, and Sullivan v. Shipping Board, 76 Pa. Superior Ct. 30, 34-35, and do not now require discussion.
The remaining defense, that it was discretionary to grant or refuse leave with pay, we cannot accept. By remaining at work after January 1, 1920, plaintiff became a beneficiary under the regulation of November 13, 1919, stipulating that he should have “cumulative leave with pay” not limited to the calendar year and not exceeding 30 days altogether. There was nothing discretionary about it; certain employees “shall be granted ......cumulative leave......”; by that regulation defendant made a firm offer of something substantial to employees who had entered its service prior to January 1, 1919, who should remain after January 1, 1920. Plaintiff performed what the defendant required as a condition of earning the leave specified; he was not obliged to remain at work; his doing so was sufficient consideration to fix defendant’s obligation (Potter v. Hartnett, 148 Pa. 15, 19). He may enforce that obligation unless he has surrendered it expressly or by implication. He could surrender it by submitting to a
Judgment affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.