Griffin v. Sisters of Saint Francis, Inc.

• Decision Date: 06 June 2007
• Docket Number: No. 06-3312.,06-3312.
• Citation: 489 F.3d 838
• Parties: Charles J. GRIFFIN and Julia A. Yarden, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. SISTERS OF SAINT FRANCIS, INC., Defendant-Appellee.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit

489 F.3d 838

Charles J. GRIFFIN and Julia A. Yarden, Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. SISTERS OF SAINT FRANCIS, INC., Defendant-Appellee.

No. 06-3312.

United States Court of Appeals, Seventh Circuit.

Argued April 17, 2007.

Decided June 6, 2007.

Rehearing En Banc Denied July 2, 2007.

Charles J. Griffin (argued), Cincinnati, OH, pro se.

Julia A. Yarden (argued), Cincinnati, OH, pro se.

Alan L. McLaughlin, Christopher C. Murray (argued), Baker & Daniels LLP, Indianapolis, IN, for Defendant-Appellee.

Before KANNE, WOOD, and EVANS, Circuit Judges.

PER CURIAM.

Charles Griffin and Julia Yarden were fired from their jobs at Michaela Farm in Oldenburg, Indiana. The farm is owned and run by the Sisters of Saint Francis ("SOSF"), an order of Catholic nuns. Griffin, who had worked on the farm for nearly four years, and Yarden, who had been there for just a few months, believed that they were terminated because Yarden was pregnant, and they sued SOSF under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e(k) ("PDA"). They lost on summary judgment, and on appeal, Griffin and Yarden—who proceed pro se—argue that they provided ample evidence that their supervisor knew of Yarden's pregnancy, fired the couple for that reason, and offered pretextual reasons for the decisions. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the judgment of the district court.

I.

Griffin began living and working at Michaela Farm in December 1996 and became Farm Manager the following year. In addition to doing general farm work, Griffin planned the farm's planting and harvesting, purchased farm equipment, and oversaw the interns who began working on the farm in 1998. He was hired and supervised by the director of the farm, Sister Anita Brelage.

In early 1999, Griffin met Yarden, a volunteer at the farm, and the two began dating. Shortly thereafter, in May 1999, Sister Carol Ann Sundermann told Brelage that she had heard that Yarden was pregnant. Brelage approached Griffin and asked if that was true; he replied that Yarden was not pregnant. The plaintiffs allege that Brelage told them that an out-of-wedlock pregnancy would be disastrous for the farm. Yarden in fact had become pregnant around that time but suffered a miscarriage. She did not tell Brelage or anyone else at the farm about that pregnancy until August 2000.

A few times in 1999 and 2000, Brelage approached Griffin and Yarden about what she perceived as the couple's lack of discretion and its effect on the morale of other workers at the farm. She emphasized the importance of their being "discreet" in their personal relationship. When Griffin challenged Brelage to explain what she meant, she replied that, for example, driving the tractor around the farm with Yarden on his lap, as she had seen him do, was not discreet. In June 2000, Brelage encountered Yarden outside Griffin's apartment on the farm some time after 10 p.m., and once again she asked the couple to be more discreet. She explained that the farm was under scrutiny because neighbors had complained to the Archdiocese about certain activities on the farm such as Tai Chi lessons and "hippies" working on a construction project. Brelage feared that the Archdiocese would shut down the farm if it learned, from more complaints from people in the community, that behavior contrary to Roman Catholic teachings occurred on the farm. She noted that Griffin would be out of job if that happened. Yarden perceived this statement as a threat to fire Griffin because of his relationship with her.

Griffin also came under scrutiny for his treatment of the interns he was charged with training and supervising. In 1999 and 2000, four female interns spoke to Brelage about Griffin. They complained that Griffin treated male and female interns differently in work assignments and reported that he inappropriately touched and made sexual comments to female interns. After one such complaint, Brelage asked Griffin to get a psychological evaluation. Griffin complied, and the psychologist reported back that Griffin did not intend any sexual harassment and was not a threat to other workers. At a staff meeting in May 2000, one intern proclaimed that she would leave the farm if Griffin stayed. When it was clear that Griffin wasn't leaving, she quit. After this incident, Griffin complained to Brelage that she had not stuck up for him at the meeting. Brelage informed Griffin that other staff members were questioning her leadership because she continued to support him. Shortly thereafter, the farm's "core staff" decided to suspend the intern program.

Despite what appeared to be ongoing tension between Brelage and Griffin and Yarden, in June 2000 Brelage acceded to Griffin's suggestion that she hire Yarden. Yarden was offered a part-time position (16 hours per week) to begin with a 90-day trial period. Yarden's primary responsibility was to market the farm's organic produce to restaurants and stores. Yarden began her job on June 3, 2000. A short time later, she and Griffin announced their engagement at a farm banquet.

Later in the summer, Griffin and Yarden were both fired. On August 15, 2000, Griffin dropped by Brelage's office unannounced to discuss whether she was upset with him. The two spoke about Brelage's concerns about the farm's direction, including the intern program, which recently had been discontinued as a result of problems with retaining the interns. Brelage told Griffin that she was uncomfortable hosting female interns on the farm. Although she had not planned to fire Griffin before this meeting, Brelage agreed with Griffin when he suggested that she did not want him around anymore. Griffin then stated that he wanted severance pay if he left the farm. Brelage agreed. Griffin also stated that he wanted it clear for the record that he had not quit. Brelage told him that she would record his separation from the farm as a termination effective on August 16.

Brelage called an emergency meeting of the farm's core staff on the evening of August 15. She related her conversation with Griffin, and the staff members unanimously supported her decision to terminate Griffin. The following day, Griffin and Yarden met (together) with Brelage. Griffin asked Sister Brelage why he was being fired, and she repeated her concern that she could not have a meaningful internship program on the farm as long as she felt uncomfortable with Griffin supervising female interns. Brelage also told Yarden that she was fired because her services were no longer needed at the farm. Yarden then told Brelage that she had had a miscarriage two weeks earlier. This was the first time Yarden had mentioned her pregnancy to Brelage, who "had not observed that Ms. Yarden was pregnant at any time in 2000." Yarden then informed Brelage for the first time that she also had a miscarriage in 1999.

Griffin challenged his termination through an internal grievance process, and his termination was upheld by Brelage's superiors. He also sought unemployment benefits. In the context of proceedings on that claim, an administrative law judge concluded that Griffin had been terminated without "just cause" within the meaning of Indiana Code § 22-4-15-1(d).

After exhausting their administrative remedies, Griffin and Yarden filed a multicount complaint against SOSF in federal district court. They claimed that they had been discriminated against on the basis of religion and sex and brought state-law claims of breach of contract and intentional infliction of emotional distress. They later amended their complaint to include a claim of discrimination based on pregnancy in violation of the PDA. They asserted that SOSF fired both of them "for the sole reason that Plaintiff Yarden was pregnant out-of-wedlock with Plaintiff Griffin's child."

The district court granted summary judgment for SOSF on the pregnancy-discrimination claim, which is the only subject of this appeal. Although SOSF argued that Griffin's claim failed because he was not protected by the PDA, the district court assumed for purposes of its decision that he could assert a claim as someone "who was treated differently `because of pregnancy.'" But, the court determined, Griffin and Yarden could not make out a prima facie case of discrimination because they did not present evidence that similarly situated coworkers were treated more favorably. The court also concluded that the reasons SOSF gave for firing the two — that Griffin had "relational difficulties" with other employees and that Yarden's services were no longer needed — were not pretextual.

II.

On appeal, Yarden and Griffin argue that the district court's decision was erroneous, primarily because, in their view, SOSF has not supported its stated reasons for firing them, and the reasons therefore are pretext for unlawful discrimination. They also challenge the district court's conclusion that they did not make out a prima facie case of discrimination; they assert that numerous similarly situated employees were treated more favorably. SOSF of course defends the district court's conclusion that the plaintiffs neither made out a prima facie case of discrimination nor established pretext. However, SOSF also continues to press its argument that Griffin's claim fails as a matter of law because, under the facts of this case, he is not protected by the PDA. The plaintiffs disagree; they assert that the PDA protects men and women equally against discrimination for exercising their "reproductive rights." Because we have not had occasion to decide whether a male plaintiff can state an employment discrimination claim based on an adverse employment action allegedly taken because of a partner's pregnancy, and because there is no need to analyze Griffin's claim any further if it fails as a matter of law, we address this issue before turning to the parties' other arguments.

The PDA amends Title VII to define discrimination "because of sex" to include discrimination "because of or on the basis of pregnancy,...