Anthony v. Com. of Mass.
| Decision Date | 29 March 1976 |
| Docket Number | Civ. A. No. 74-5061-T,75-1991-T. |
| Citation | 415 F. Supp. 485 |
| Parties | Carol A. ANTHONY et al. v. The COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS et al. Helen B. FEENEY v. The COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS et al. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts |
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Ropes & Gray, Thomas G. Digman, Jr., Richard P. Ward, John Reinstein, Boston, Mass., for plaintiffs.
Alan K. Posner, Asst. Atty. Gen., Boston, Mass., for defendants.
John J. Curtin, Jr., John F. Adkins, Bingham, Dana & Gould, Boston, Mass., for American Legion. Albert E. Salt, intervenor, pro se.
Before CAMPBELL, Circuit Judge, and MURRAY and TAURO, District Judges.
These two actions are brought under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 by four female Massachusetts residents who claim they failed to receive Civil Service appointments with the Commonwealth due to the operation of the Massachusetts Veterans' Preference Statute,1 Mass.Gen.Laws ch. 31, § 23, which they claim unconstitutionally discriminates against them because of their sex. They now seek to permanently enjoin the continued enforcement of § 23.
Temporary restraining orders, consented to by all parties, were entered in each case by a single judge of this court prohibiting the defendants2 from making, or preparing to make, recommendations for positions sought by the plaintiffs pending the outcome of this litigation. See 28 U.S.C. § 2284(3). The parties in both actions submitted agreed statements of fact. The cases were consolidated for argument and then submitted for a decision on the merits.
The Massachusetts Civil Service System covers approximately 60% of those employed by the Commonwealth. In the Classified Official Service, the division which includes the positions sought by the plaintiffs, 47,005 appointments (not including promotions) were made during the ten year period between July 1, 1963 through June 30, 1973. Forty-three percent (20,211) of those appointees were women while 57% (26,794) were men. Of the women appointees, 1.8% (374) were veterans, while 54% of the men (14,476) had veteran status.
This overall 57-43 ratio of men to women in the Official Civil Service does not tell the whole story, however. A large percentage of female appointees serve in lower grade permanent positions for which males traditionally have not applied. Some females obtained civil service appointments through a now-defunct practice by which appointing authorities requested only female applicants for particular jobs from the Civil Service Division. Other females have been appointed from lists which did not include many veterans. Agreed Statements of Facts in Anthony v. Commonwealth hereinafter Anthony Statement ¶ 21; Agreed Statement of Facts in Feeney v. Commonwealth hereinafter Feeney Statement ¶ 20.
Employment security is an attractive feature of a permanent civil service appointment. An appointee chosen for such a position, who successfully completes a six-month probationary period, receives essentially permanent tenure. Mass.Gen.Laws ch. 31, § 20D. Such appointee cannot be discharged except for cause, and is statutorily entitled to a hearing at which the basis for dismissal may be challenged. Mass.Gen. Laws ch. 31, § 43.
The first step toward obtaining a permanent civil service appointment is the taking of an examination administered by the Civil Service Division. The examination is designed to measure an applicant's relative ability and fitness for the particular position he seeks. For certain positions an "unassembled examination" is administered, consisting merely of assigned scores based upon an applicant's training and experience. For other positions, an applicant is required to take a written test, the results of which will serve as one element in a composite score reflecting an evaluation of the applicant's training and experience.
Once an applicant passes the examination, he becomes an "eligible" and is placed on an "eligible list." Those on the eligible list are then ranked as follows under a formula which is the basis for plaintiffs' complaint:
The Veterans' Preference provided in § 23 is, therefore, an integral part of the selection process. Although a veteran must achieve a passing test grade, an eligible non-veteran can never be placed ahead of a veteran, regardless of how superior his test score might be. As a practical matter, therefore, the Veterans' Preference replaces testing as the criterion for determining which eligibles will be placed at the top of the list.3
Whenever a state agency needs to fill a Civil Service vacancy, it notifies the Civil Service Division. The Civil Service Director then "certifies" several candidates for appointment from the top of the appropriate eligible list, in ratios set forth in various administrative regulations, by sending those names to the appointing authority. In most instances, more names are certified for appointment than there are vacancies in order to give the appointing authority a measure of discretion in the actual hiring decision. The appointing authority is required to make the appointment from among the names so certified, but is not required to appoint the person highest on the list. Feeney Statement ¶ 9.
A full eligible list remains in effect for a maximum of two years, except when no eligibles remain available for appointment before the expiration of that period, or when a new examination is given for a position during the two year effective period of an eligible list. In the latter instance, the remaining eligibles on the prior list are integrated into the new list in order of their composite scores within each preference category. All eligibles who have attained a particular composite score within a preference category must be included among the eligibles certified for appointment. For example, should the Director, in accordance with a given regulation, certify that the five highest scores were 95 to 99, there might well be a number of eligibles who scored within that range. All would be certified.
This Civil Service appointment scheme, subject as it is to the Veterans' Preference formula, is affected in its practical impact by a number of federal statutes and regulations which have limited sharply the opportunity for women to serve in the armed forces. Indeed, the percentage of females in the Official Civil Service who are also veterans (1.8%), is a reflection of the fact that, during most of the post-World War II period, no more than 2% of the armed forces personnel could be women. See, e. g., 32 C.F.R. § 580.4(b). It is not surprising, therefore, that, currently only 2% of Massachusetts veterans are women. Feeney Statement ¶ 31.
Historically, women were excluded from the military until 1918 when approximately 10,000 were allowed to enlist in the Navy. After World War I, these volunteer groups were disbanded. Thereafter, until 1942, only nurses were allowed to enlist. Feeney Statement ¶ 35. From 1948 until 1967, women were prohibited from making up more than 2% of total personnel in the armed forces.4 The Army, the largest branch of the nation's armed services, still maintains a 2% limitation by regulation. 32 C.F.R. § 580.4(b).
Apart from these absolute limitations, various enlistment and appointment criteria have, until recently, been more stringent for women than for men. A man may enlist at age 17. But, until 1967, women were statutorily barred until age 18. 10 U.S.C. § 505 as amended by Act of May 24, 1974, Pub.L. No. 93-290 § 1, 88 Stat. 173; Joint Anthony/Feeney Exhibits 100-04 hereinafter J. Exhs.. Parental consent was required of women under 21. For men, the age was 18. Feeney Statement ¶ 38. Moreover, women seeking enlistment have been subject to higher mental aptitude test score requirements and more rigorous physical requirements than men, as well as more extensive application and screening procedures, including requirements for personal references and attractive appearance. J. Exhs. 93, p. 14, 99, 100-04, 107-10, 123, 154. Until recently, the armed services prohibited the enlistment and appointment of married women and women with children less than 18 years of age, while similarly situated men were not so excluded. Feeney Statement ¶ 38; J. Exhs. 98, 99, p. 2, 103, 104. And, of course, women have always been ineligible for the draft.
Nothing in the Massachusetts scheme prohibits women from competing for civil service positions. But the practical consequence of the operation of these federal military proscriptions, in combination with the Veterans' Preference formula is inescapable. Few women will ever become veterans so as to qualify for the preference; and so, few, if any, women will ever achieve a top position on a civil service eligibility list, for other than positions traditionally held by women.
The plaintiffs contend that this consequence has effectively deprived them of an opportunity to compete for the most attractive positions in the state civil service. They maintain that such an absolute and permanent negative impact on the opportunities of women to obtain significant public employment consistent with their qualifications violates the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. It is to these specific contentions that we now turn.
The plaintiff Carol A. Anthony, is a female resident of Massachusetts, admitted to practice law here. She is a provisional appointee to a counsel position in the Massachusetts Department of Public Welfare. On January 9, 1974, she applied to take an announced unassembled examination for appointment to the permanent position of Counsel I. Her qualifications were rated in May 1974 and Ms. Anthony received a grade of...
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