Groff v. DeJoy
| Decision Date | 06 April 2021 |
| Docket Number | CIVIL ACTION NO. 19-1879 |
| Parties | GERALD E. GROFF, Plaintiff, v. LOUIS DEJOY, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Eastern District of Pennsylvania |
I. INTRODUCTION
Plaintiff, Gerald Groff ("Groff" or "Plaintiff") brings this suit against his former employer, Louis DeJoy, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service ("Defendant"). Groff's Complaint contains a cause of action for religious discrimination under two different theories: disparate treatment and failure to accommodate. Before the Court is the Motion for Summary Judgment of Defendant, the Motion for Partial Summary Judgment of Groff, the parties Joint Statement of Material Facts, and Plaintiff's Motion for Sanctions. All motions have been responded to and oral argument has been held. For the reasons discussed more fully below, Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment will be granted, and Groff's Motion for Partial Summary Judgment will be denied.
II. LEGAL STANDARD
Summary judgment is appropriate if there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law. Fed. R. Civ. Proc. 56(c). "A motion for summary judgment will not be defeated by 'the mere existence' of some disputed facts but will be denied when there is a genuine issue of material fact." Am. Eagle Outfitters v. Lyle & Scott Ltd., 584 F.3d 575, 581 (3d Cir. 2009) (quoting Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 247-248 (1986)). A fact is "material" if proof of its existence or non-existence might affect the outcome of the litigation, and a dispute is "genuine" if "the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party." Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248.
In undertaking this analysis, the court views the facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. "After making all reasonable inferences in the nonmoving party's favor, there is a genuine issue of material fact if a reasonable jury could find for the nonmoving party." Pignataro v. Port Auth. of N.Y. and N.J., 593 F.3d 265, 268 (3d Cir. 2010) (citing Reliance Ins. Co. v. Moessner, 121 F.3d 895, 900 (3d Cir. 1997)). While the moving party bears the initial burden of showing the absence of a genuine issue of material fact, meeting this obligation shifts the burden to the non-moving party who must "set forth specific facts showing that there is a genuine issue for trial." Anderson, 477 U.S. at 250.
III. FACTUAL BACKGROUND
Groff identifies as an Evangelical Christian within the Protestant tradition. (Joint Statement of Facts, ¶ 1.) On April 7, 2012, he was hired as a Temporary Relief Carrier at the Quarryville Post Office for the USPS. (Id. at ¶ 2.) He transferred to the Paradise Post Office as a Rural Carrier Associate on July 14, 2012. (Id. at ¶ 4.) As an RCA, Groff was classified as a "non-career" employee, responsible to cover for the work of any Rural Route Carrier (a "career" employee) in the delivery of mail and packages. (Id. at ¶ 5.) Part of being an RCA is being flexible. (Id.) Most career employees who are mail carriersbegan their USPS employment as a noncareer employee. An RCA is one such non-career position. This is generally an entry-level position. (JSOF at ¶ 6.) RCAs are responsible for the safe and efficient delivery and collection of the mail, working part-time to cover for regular carriers. (https://about.usps.com/publications/pub181.pdf.) Work hours vary depending on the office and route. Id. As flexible, relief carriers, all RCAs must be willing to work weekends and holidays. Id. RCAs are neither guaranteed specific hours or set schedules and are scheduled on an as-needed basis. (See Hess Decl. at ¶3, ECF No. 36, Ex. E.)
Groff was part of the Central Pennsylvania District of USPS, which includes Lancaster County. (Id. at ¶ 7.) In an effort to remain profitable, in 2013, the USPS signed a contract with Amazon pursuant to which the USPS would deliver Amazon packages. (Groff Dep. at 159, 166). It was critically important to the USPS that Sunday Amazon delivery be successful. (Hess Decl. ¶4.)
On May 24, 2016, USPS and the National Rural Letter Carriers Association ("Union") entered a Memorandum of Understanding ("MOU") about how the USPS would deliver for Amazon. (Id. at ¶ 8.) The MOU sets forth a detailed procedure for Sunday Amazon deliveries. First, the union creates a list of all part-time flexible rural carriers, substitute carriers, RCAs, and rural carrier relief employees. Then, every employee is asked if he or she wants to work on Sundays and holidays. Then two lists are created: one of employees who want to volunteer to work on Sundays and holidays; and one of employees who do not. (Id. at ¶ 9.) On any given Sunday or holiday, management determines how many carriers are necessary given the expected mail volume. (Id. at ¶ 10.) Under the MOU, management then assigns carriers as follows: First managementschedules assistant rural carriers ("ARCs"). If there are sufficient ARCs, no additional part-time flexible carriers are scheduled. If there are insufficient ARCs, management then schedules additional carriers from the volunteer list, on a rotating basis. If between the ARCs and volunteers there are sufficient carriers to cover the need, no additional part-time flexible carriers are scheduled. If there are insufficient carriers between the ARCs and volunteers, additional part-time flexible carriers are scheduled, on a rotating basis, from the non-volunteer list. (JSOF at ¶ 10.) Pursuant to the MOU, a part-time flexible carrier may be bypassed in the rotation if the part-time flexible carrier has approved leave or a non-scheduled day adjacent to the Sunday or holiday or scheduling the part-time flexible carrier to work on Sunday or holiday would result in the carrier exceeding 40 hours at the end of the work week. In addition, RCAs covering the extended vacancy of full-time career carriers are only scheduled if all other part-time flexible carriers have been scheduled and more carriers are still needed. (Id. at ¶ 11.)
For RCAs, seniority is based on time in service in a particular office, not based on time working for USPS as an organization. (Id. at ¶ 12.) In 2015, prior to the enactment of the MOU, exempting an RCA from Sunday delivery was within the discretion of the postmaster. (Hess Decl. ¶7.) The relatively large Quarryville station had other carriers available to deliver on Sundays. (Id. at ¶5.) The Quarryville station began delivering Amazon packages on Sundays in 2015, (Groff Dep. at 161, 169, ECF No. 36, Ex. B,) and Groff negotiated with his then-postmaster, Patricia Wright, to be exempt from working on Sundays. (Id. at 108.) In 2016, Postmaster Wright informed Groff that she would no longer be able to exempt him from Sunday work. (Groff Response to Interrogatory No. 5, ECF No. 36, Ex. C.)
After learning he would no longer be exempted from Sunday work in Quarryville, Groff requested reassignment to the Holtwood station, which was not yet delivering Amazon packages on Sundays. (Groff Dep. at 161.) At all relevant times that Groff was working at Holtwood, Brian Hess was Groff's Postmaster. (JSOF at ¶ 13.) When Hess hired Groff, he knew Groff transferred to avoid Sunday Amazon deliveries due to Groff's religious beliefs. (Id. at ¶ 14.) No one ever promised Groff that the station would continue to be so exempt or that he specifically would be exempt from delivering on Sundays. (Id. at ¶ 15.)
From the time he first transferred to the Holtwood station until March of 2017, Groff got along well with Postmaster Hess and the other employees in that station and was never disciplined. (Id. at ¶ 17.) Beginning in March of 2017, the Holtwood Post Office was required to participate in Amazon package deliveries, which meant Groff could be scheduled to work on Sundays. (Id. at ¶ 18.) The first Amazon schedule involving Holtwood carriers was for Sunday, March 19, 2017, and Groff was scheduled for that Sunday. (Id. at ¶ 16.)
From the time Groff was required to participate in Sunday Amazon deliveries until his employment with USPS ended on January 18, 2019, Groff never worked on a Sunday, although he did make Amazon deliveries on holidays that were not a Sunday. (JSOF at ¶ 21.) Management suggested all the following accommodations to Groff: If he was scheduled on a Sunday, he could take another day that week entirely off from work as a day of worship or he could come in later on a Sunday, after church. Management also suggested that it would contact other stations to attempt to find coverage for Groff when he was scheduled on a Sunday, and if coverage was found, Groff would be excused. (Id.at ¶ 22.) Groff was also permitted to find his own coverage for Sundays that he was assigned to work. (Hess Dep. at 122, 126, ECF No. 36, Ex. F.)
Groff was scheduled but did not report to work on the following days: March 19, 2017; April 2, 2017; April 16, 2017; April 23, 2017; May 7, 2017; May 21, 2017; June 11, 2017; July 2, 2017; July 23, 2017; August 6, 2017; August 28, 2017; September 17, 2017; October 1, 2017; October 15, 2017; December 3, 2017; December 17, 2017; January 14, 2018; March 4, 2018, March 18, 2018; March 25, 2018; April 1, 2018; April 8, 2018; April 22, 2018; and May 13, 2018. (JSOF at ¶ 23.) This is at least 24 scheduled Sundays where Groff was scheduled and did not report to work. (Id.) When the plaintiff was scheduled on a Sunday and did not work, it upset the other carriers. (Evans Dep. at 42, ECF No. 36, Ex. I; Hess Dep. at 41.) There were complaints. (French Dep. at 23) and discussion of a boycott. (Hess Dep. at 41-42.) One carrier transferred from Holtwood because he felt it was not fair that the plaintiff was not reporting on scheduled Sundays. (Hess Dep. at 102.) Another carrier resigned in part because of the situation. (Hess Dep. 103.) When the plaintiff was scheduled and did not work, it complicated the...
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