Koschoff v. Henderson

• Decision Date: 13 July 2000
• Docket Number: No. Civ.A.98-CV-2736.,Civ.A.98-CV-2736.
• Citation: 109 F.Supp.2d 332
• Parties: Susan J. KOSCHOFF, Plaintiff, v. William J. HENDERSON, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania

109 F.Supp.2d 332

Susan J. KOSCHOFF, Plaintiff, v. William J. HENDERSON, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service, Defendant.

No. Civ.A.98-CV-2736.

United States District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania.

July 13, 2000.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Joan E. London, Reading, PA, for plaintiff.

Benjamin R. Barnett, AUSA, Philadelphia, PA, for defendant.

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER

VAN ANTWERPEN, District Judge.

I. INTRODUCTION

Plaintiff Susan J. Koschoff filed this civil action on May 28, 1998 seeking damages arising from alleged discrimination, retaliation, and a hostile work environment while employed by the United States Postal Service¹ ("USPS"), in violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. See 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-16. Discovery was completed on June 18, 1999, after which both parties moved for summary judgment. We denied Plaintiff's motion and granted partial summary judgment for Defendant on October 7, 1999. Remaining for trial were Plaintiff's hostile work environment claim resulting from her employment at the Reading, Pennsylvania, Downtown Station facility ("DTS") from June, 1995, through November, 1996, and Plaintiff's retaliation claim resulting from her proposed separation from USPS on April 30, 1999.

We conducted a non-jury trial from April 3 through April 6, 2000, in Easton, Pennsylvania. After Plaintiff's and Defendant's brief opening statements, Plaintiff called George Cook ("Cook"), a letter carrier at DTS and grievance chairman of the National Association of Letter Carriers ("NALC") local which represented Plaintiff. Plaintiff also called Kenneth Rhoads ("Rhoads"), a letter carrier at DTS and NALC official; Sandra Williams ("Williams"), the Reading postmaster; Kimberly McKnight-Jimenez ("McKnight-Jimenez"), a co-worker of Plaintiff at DTS; Andrew Caporale, an expert vocational specialist; and Plaintiff herself. Defendant called Kevin Moyer ("Moyer"), one of Plaintiff's supervisors through April or May of 1996 and later station manager at DTS; and Judith Pelka ("Pelka"), one of Plaintiff's supervisors.

In lieu of closing arguments, we ordered the parties to submit proposed findings of fact and briefs. Based upon the parties' submissions, our evaluation of the evidence presented, and the credibility of the witnesses during the non-jury trial, we have made special findings of fact and conclusions of law. These are set forth more fully infra. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 52(a).

We dismiss Plaintiff's retaliation claim without prejudice. In regard to Plaintiff's hostile work environment claim, we grant judgment for Defendant.

II. FINDINGS OF FACT

There is considerable disagreement between the parties regarding the events which took place while Plaintiff was employed at DTS between June, 1995 and November, 1996. We make the following special findings of fact:²

A. Generally

1. Plaintiff began working for USPS in March, 1985. (4/3/00 tr. at 165.) She eventually became a letter carrier and worked at DTS during the relevant time period from June, 1995, to November, 1996. (Id. at 167, 175-76). Plaintiff stopped reporting for work at DTS on November 5, 1996. (Id. at 161-62; 4/5/00 tr. at 114-15.) She has not worked nor attempted to work since that time. (4/5/00 tr. at 118, 135.)

2. Plaintiff received normal pay and benefits for her position, including increases negotiated between USPS and NALC. (Id. at 136-37; Def. ex. 2 at 438-39, 442.)

3. During the relevant period, approximately five or six female letter carriers and thirty-two to forty male letter carriers were employed at DTS. (4/3/00 tr. at 38; 4/4/00 tr. at 84-85.)

4. Because DTS suffered from low performance and inefficiency, USPS managers instituted a strict, "by the book" management approach. This new approach resulted in increased labor problems, greater need for discipline, and more grievances. (4/4/00 tr. at 10-18.) Consequently, the working atmosphere at DTS was very unpleasant. (Def. ex. 113 at 27.) It was characterized by "[o]verbearing management, dictatorial attitude, no compassion for the workers [and a] tendency to single out certain people." (Def. ex. 112 at 29.) It was "unbearable.... It was almost like a prison.... [Employees] were treated like children." (Def. ex. 113 at 8-9.)

5. Management's treatment of Plaintiff was harsher than the treatment given many other employees. It can fairly be characterized as harassment. (4/3/00 tr. at 37, 121-22; Def. ex. 113 at 10, 15, 16.) This treatment included being berated in front of other employees, (4/3/00 tr. at 125; Def. ex. 114 at 44-46), unusually strict supervision (discussed infra), unusually strict enforcement of the policy regarding leaving one's work area (discussed infra), and frequent reprimands. (4/3/00 tr. at 76-77, 134.)

6. Plaintiff was not the only employee harassed or treated more harshly than others. For example, we find credible the deposition testimony of Plaintiff's coworker Gary Bucher that six male mail carriers and a second female carrier were also subject to similar treatment. This treatment included heightened supervision, being talked down to, and being earmarked as "bad carriers." (Def. ex. 112 at 29, 58.) We also find credible the deposition testimony of Plaintiff's coworker Bonnie Sterling that as many as fifteen carriers (including Plaintiff) felt they were targeted by management. (Def. ex. 113 at 10, 32.) In addition, we find credible the deposition testimony of Harvey Kimble that at least four male and two female letter carriers (including Plaintiff) felt targeted by management. (Def. ex. 114 at 16-18, 44, 50, 53.)

We do not find credible the testimony of Plaintiff, (4/3/00 tr. at 197; 4/4/00 tr. at 94-95; 4/5/00 tr. at 98; Def. ex. 2 at 103), Cook, (4/3/00 tr. at 35-36, 36-37, 41, 44), and Rhoads, (4/3/00 tr. at 111-112, 114-15, 127; Pl. ex. 8), to the extent it implies that Plaintiff was the only employee subject to harsher treatment. We also do not find credible the testimony of McKnight-Jimenez that only women were harassed at DTS. (4/4/00 tr. at 60-61, 65-66.)

7. Plaintiff was inclined to fight management's unpleasant "by the book" style at DTS rather than acquiesce to it. (4/6/00 tr. at 20-21.) One of Plaintiff's doctors wrote that "she has some kind of war going on with her superiors." (Def. ex. 66 at 8/12/96.)

B. Explicit Sexual Harassment

8. Plaintiff was not subject to explicitly sexual harassment in the course of her employment, including no sexually explicit language, (4/5/00 tr. at 110; Def. ex. 2 at 102, 160, 179-80), no sexual jokes told by supervisors, (Def. ex at 180-81), no sexual comments, (id. at 183) (notwithstanding the "bitch" and "little dyke" comments discussed infra), no sexual gestures, (id. at 181-82), no touching by any supervisor, (id. at 102, 159-60), no propositions or attempted social contact by any supervisor, (id. at 107-08, 160-161, 169; 4/5/00 tr. at 128), and no sexually explicit calendars, graffiti, photos, or sexual objects in her work space (except one picture discussed infra). (Id. at 177-78.) Even when one of Plaintiff's female supervisors wanted to meet Plaintiff alone, Plaintiff was not certain that the supervisor had sexual reasons for wanting to do so. (4/5/00 tr. at 127-28). See also Findings of Fact ¶ 20, hereinafter Facts ¶ 20.

9. In July or August of 1995, while in the presence of other letter carriers, Plaintiff was asked by a supervisor trainee, Jay Decker, "why is it that everyone thinks you're a bitch?" (4/5/00 tr. at 109, 133). Plaintiff did not consider this comment sufficient to warrant a complaint. (Id. at 134.) We find that Decker intended to demean Plaintiff, not merely to ask a question. Although Decker's particular choice of epithet would most certainly have been different had Plaintiff been a man, we find that Decker was not motivated by her gender.

10. We find credible the testimony of Cook and Rhoads that Moyer, who was one of Plaintiff's supervisors, referred to Plaintiff using crude epithets including "little dyke." (4/3/00 tr. at 55, 127; Def. Ex. 76 at 94.) We find credible the testimony of Cook and Rhoads that Moyer intended to made work difficult for homosexuals working under him both in the Army Reserve and at DTS. (4/3/00 tr. at 57, 126; Def. Ex 76 at 94.) We do not find credible Pelka's testimony, (4/6/00 tr. at 87), and we find particularly un-credible Moyer's testimony, (id. at 61, 63), denying these allegations. While we express no opinion regarding the irrelevant issue of Plaintiff's sexual orientation, we find that Moyer's comment was motivated by his belief that Plaintiff was homosexual and by his intent to discriminate against homosexuals of either gender. (4/3/00 tr. at 127.)

11. Someone hung a picture of a woman's breasts in Plaintiff's work space toward the latter part of 1996. (4/5/00 tr. at 110, 134.) Plaintiff chose to ignore it, and two weeks later it had been removed. (Id. at 110-11, 134-35).

C. Non-Substantive Job Performance

12. We find credible the testimony of Pelka that she never intentionally followed Plaintiff into the bathroom, with the exception of one incident when Pelka believed Plaintiff was ill. In that case, Pelka followed Plaintiff into the bathroom to offer assistance. (4/6/00 tr. at 79.) On this point, Pelka's testimony is consistent with Rhoads'. (4/3/00 tr. at 110-11.) On another occasion when Plaintiff was ill, Pelka gave her a ride home. (4/6/00 tr. at 76.) We do not find credible the testimony of Plaintiff that Pelka followed her into the bathroom on January 30, February 13, and February 29, 1996, (4/5/00 tr. at 156-57). We also do not find credible Plaintiff's similar deposition testimony in which she claims to rely upon her work diary for her recollection, (Def. ex. 2 at 53-56), because Plaintiff's work diary does not mention such events on those dates. (Def. ex. 23.) We do not find credible the testimony of Cook, (4/3/00 tr. at 48), and McKnight-Jimenez, (4/4/00 tr. at 62), to the extent they imply Pelka followed Plaintiff into...