Emmel v. Coca-Cola Bottling Co. of Chicago, Inc., 93 C 2290.

• Decision Date: 29 September 1995
• Docket Number: No. 93 C 2290.,93 C 2290.
• Citation: 904 F. Supp. 723
• Court: U.S. District Court — Northern District of Illinois
• Parties: Karen M. EMMEL, Plaintiff, v. COCA-COLA BOTTLING COMPANY OF CHICAGO, INC., Defendant.

904 F. Supp. 723

Karen M. EMMEL, Plaintiff, v. COCA-COLA BOTTLING COMPANY OF CHICAGO, INC., Defendant.

No. 93 C 2290.

United States District Court, N.D. Illinois, Eastern Division.

September 29, 1995.

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Ernest Thomas Rossiello, Margaret Ann Zuleger, Rossiello & Associates, Chicago, IL, for plaintiff.

Marian Conroy Haney, Marcia E. Goodman, Danuta Bembenista Panich, Eric S. Dreiband, Mayer, Brown & Platt, Chicago, IL, Jeffrey S. Fowler, Laner, Muchin, Dombrow, Becker, Levin & Tominberg, Ltd., Chicago, IL, William Robert Sullivan, Jr., Franczek, Sullivan, Mann, Crement, Hein, Relias, P.C., Chicago, IL, for defendant.

MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER

HOLDERMAN, District Judge:

In April 1993, plaintiff Karen M. Emmel, after complying with the jurisdictional prerequisites, filed the initial complaint in this suit (R.¹ 1-1) under Title VII, as amended by the Civil Rights Act of 1991, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(1). The complaint alleged that defendant Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Chicago, Inc.² ("Coca-Cola") committed employment discrimination in 1992 against plaintiff Emmel because of her gender. Plaintiff filed a second complaint in May 1994 alleging the occurrence of additional acts of sex discrimination against her by defendant in 1993. The second complaint was filed as Case No. 94 C 3230. An amended complaint consolidating plaintiff's claims against defendant and alleging acts of sex discrimination in both 1992 and 1993 as well as alleging retaliatory discharge in August 1994 was filed on September 16, 1994. (R. 99.) The trial commenced before a jury pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 1981a on November 1, 1994. (Tr.³ 1.)

The evidence established that during 1992 and 1993 plaintiff Emmel was denied promotions to certain positions in the upper-management of the defendant company for which she was qualified. Each open position denied to plaintiff in defendant's upper-management was offered to and filled by a man. The evidence at the trial also established that Coca-Cola had a policy of discrimination against women in upper-management positions enunciated by the owner of defendant company, Marvin Herb, or at the very least, had reckless indifference to the federally protected rights of the women qualified for such positions to be free from sex discrimination. The first proof of the discriminating policy's existence surfaced in 1986 (Tr. 153-154, 903-906, 994) and was confirmed by plaintiff's direct supervisor in July 1992 (Tr. 918-19) that the top officials of Coca-Cola had wanted men in these positions. The evidence presented at the trial further showed that at no time while under the private ownership of Marvin Herb (Tr. 56, 90) did Coca-Cola ever allow any woman to hold any of the upper-management positions defendant denied to plaintiff (Tr. 58-61, 95-96) because of defendant's gender discrimination.

On November 21, 1994 the jury in this case, after evaluating all the evidence presented at trial, found that defendant Coca-Cola had unlawfully discriminated against plaintiff because of her gender in connection with three promotions to upper-management positions that defendant had denied to plaintiff during 1992 and 1993.⁴ The jury in returning its verdict (R. 150) in plaintiff's favor as to the three promotions responded in its verdict to detailed special interrogatories and stated:

a. "that plaintiff's sex was, more likely than not, a motivating factor in the decision of defendant, HONDO INCORPORATED, doing business as COCA-COLA BOTTLING CO. OF CHICAGO, not to promote plaintiff, KAREN EMMEL, to one of the five positions of Area Development Manager on or about July 8, 1992." (Interrogatory No. 1.) (R. 150.)

b. "that plaintiff's sex was, more likely than not, a motivating factor in the decision of defendant, HONDO INCORPORATED, doing business as COCA-COLA BOTTLING COMPANY OF CHICAGO, not to promote plaintiff, KAREN EMMEL, to one of the three positions of Key Account Executive on or about September 15, 1993." (Interrogatory No. 3.) (R. 150.)

c. "that plaintiff's sex was, more likely than not, a motivating factor in the decision of defendant, HONDO INCORPORATED, doing business as COCA-COLA BOTTLING COMPANY OF CHICAGO, not to promote plaintiff, KAREN EMMEL, to one of the two positions of Area Development Manager on or about September 15, 1993." (Interrogatory No. 4.) (R. 150.)

The jury by answering the explicit questions of the special interrogatories addressing the issue of liability found credible the evidence that plaintiff had presented regarding the three promotions denied her because of defendant's sex discrimination. The jury in so doing exercised its prerogative to reject as not credible the evidence presented by the defense to the contrary EEOC v. G-K-G, Inc., 39 F.3d 740, 746-47 (7th Cir.1994). This court must defer to those findings since they are adequately supported by the evidence presented at the trial of the case just as appellate judges must do in viewing a district judge's findings. See Carr v. Allison Gas Turbine Division, General Motors Corporation, 32 F.3d 1007, 1008 (7th Cir.1994); Giacoletto v. Amax Zinc Co., Inc., 954 F.2d 424, 426 (7th Cir.1992).

The jury, after finding for plaintiff on three promotions that plaintiff had been denied, found that plaintiff's lost wages and salaries up to the date of the jury's verdict, minus any amount resulting from any failure by plaintiff to mitigate damages, totalled $43,000. (R. 150, Interrogatory No. 7.) The jury also found that plaintiff had sustained damages of $7,325 for humiliation, inconvenience, emotional pain and suffering as a result of defendant's discrimination (R. 150, Interrogatory No. 8.) The jury also found that defendant acted with malice or reckless indifference for the federally protected rights of plaintiff to be free from sex discrimination and assessed punitive damages in the amount of $500,000 against the defendant "to punish the defendant and to deter it and other employers from similar conduct in the future." (R. 150, Interrogatory No. 9.)

Applying the statutory limitation that related to the defendant company, the court reduced the jury's verdict of $507,325 in compensatory and punitive damages to the statutory cap of $300,000.⁵ After adding the statutorily allowed $300,000 to the $43,000 of back pay that the jury found defendant owed plaintiff up to the date of the verdict, the court entered a judgment of $343,000 in favor of the plaintiff and against the defendant. (R. 152.)

The following post-trial motions, listed in the order in which they were filed, have been briefed and are pending:

1. Plaintiff's Motion for Prejudgment Interest (R. 153);

2. Plaintiff's Motion for Lost Benefits Resulting from Employment Discrimination by Defendant (R. 154);

3. Plaintiff's Motion for Permanent Injunction Enjoining Further Violation of 42 U.S.C. 2000e-2(a) (R. 155);

4. Defendant's Renewed Motion for Judgment as a Matter of Law or in the Alternative, Motion for New Trial (R. 157);⁶

5. Plaintiff's Motion for Attorney Fees (R. 162); and

6. Defendant's Motion to Supplement the Record (R. 189).

FACTS

Plaintiff Karen Emmel graduated from college in 1976. In mid-July 1976, she began working for defendant Coca-Cola (Tr. 892.) Her first position with defendant was as an account manager. (Tr. 893.) As an account manager, she was responsible for approximately 300 to 350 accounts consisting of grocery stores, drug stores, liquor stores, gas stations and choice accounts such as Jewel, Dominick's and A & P, to which she would go and take orders. She also supervised the drivers who delivered to each account. (Tr. 893.)

Ms. Emmel's next position with the defendant company was as a Route Manager, which position latter became known by the title "District Sales Manager." She began this position in September 1981. (Tr. 895, PX 1.) In this position she supervised approximately eight route sales people and eight helpers. (Tr. 895.) She continued to be involved in sales, had supervisory responsibility for the paperwork pertaining to the customer accounts, was involved in presenting programs and providing equipment to the customers, was responsible for collecting money from both trade accounts and rental accounts in her area, and was involved in discipline of employees. Beginning in 1985, plaintiff became responsible for training new employees on the Noran hand-held computer used by defendant's employees in the business. (Tr. 896-898.) In 1986, plaintiff received the special recognition of being named "Route Manager of the Year" for the defendant company. (Tr. 902.)

In 1988, plaintiff, at the request of defendant's management personnel, moved from her position as a District Sales Manager of the Bottle/Can Division of Coca-Cola to the position of District Sales Manager in a brand new division of the Coca-Cola called the Syrup Division. (Tr. 906-907.) Initially, Ms. Emmel and her co-workers in the new Syrup Division had to survey the equipment of the approximately 1,500 accounts defendant had purchased from Coke USA, "sight unseen." (Tr. 908.) Then the equipment needed to be upgraded which "was a selling job." Ms. Emmel was involved in talking to customers about converting to the new bag-in-the-box package. (Tr. 908-909.) Because Ms. Emmel had no previous experience with the syrup end of the business she had to learn everything about this brand new division. (Tr. 909.) Her territory "was spread out immensely." (Tr. 910.) It covered various Illinois communities including St. Charles, Orland Park, Tinley Park and continuing to Joliet, Aurora and Naperville. (Tr. 909-910.) Ms. Emmel enjoyed the challenge of the new division. (Tr. 910.)

In October 1989, Ms. Emmel, because of her expertise, was offered the position of Cold Drink Specialist in the North Division of Coca-Cola. John Walsh, Vice President of Sales for the North Zone of the defendant company, told Ms. Emmel "that he was looking...