Herrera v. United Airlines, Inc.
| Decision Date | 05 December 2017 |
| Docket Number | Civil Action No. 1:16–cv–01951–DME–KMT |
| Citation | 300 F.Supp.3d 1284 |
| Parties | Joel HERRERA, Plaintiff, v. UNITED AIRLINES, INC., Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Colorado |
Mark S. Bove, Mark S. Bove, P.C., Denver, CO, for Plaintiff.
Cathy Havener Greer, William Thomas O'Connell, III, Wells, Anderson & Race, LLC, Denver, CO, for Defendant.
ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT [Doc. 27]
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ("Title VII") makes it unlawful for an employer to "discharge any individual, or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin[.]" 42 U.S.C. 2000e–2(1). In this case, Plaintiff Joel Hererra alleges that his former employer, United Airlines, Inc. ("United"), violated Title VII by unlawfully terminating his employment on the basis of his Hispanic national origin.1 The Court has before it Defendant's motion for summary judgment. [Doc. 27]. For the following reasons, the motion for summary judgment is GRANTED.
A movant is entitled to summary judgment if it shows "there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and that the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). Reviewing the depositions, interrogatories, affidavits, exhibits, and other record materials, this Court draws all reasonable inferences in favor of the nonmovant, here the Plaintiff. See, e.g., Reeves v. Sanderson Plumbing Prods., Inc., 530 U.S. 133, 150, 120 S.Ct. 2097, 147 L.Ed.2d 105 (2000). If a rational jury could find for Plaintiff, then summary judgment is unwarranted. See, e.g., Penry v. Fed. Home Loan Bank of Topeka, 155 F.3d 1257, 1261 (10th Cir. 1998).
In the summer of 2015, Plaintiff Joel Herrera was convicted in Arapahoe County court of Driving While Ability Impaired ("DWAI") with two or more priors and sentenced to serve a six-month term of imprisonment in the Arapahoe County Jail with a mandatory minimum of sixty days.2 To Herrera's surprise, Herrera Dep. at 39:11–25 [Doc. 27–1], immediate work release was authorized by the Arapahoe County Court. As part of that work release program, Herrera was authorized to leave prison during the pendency of his sentence for the sole purpose of attending work, and was required to wear an ankle monitor and have an interlock device installed in his vehicle which prevented him from driving unless he first blew into the device and established his sobriety.
At the time, Herrera was working as an Aviation Maintenance Technician for United, based out of Denver International Airport ("DIA"). Herrera had worked with United since 1989, and was described as a "good technician," of whom people spoke highly. Terenzio Dep. at 7:19–20 [Doc. 27–2]. As a Technician, Herrera reported to a Supervisor, who in turn reported to an Operating Manager, who himself reported to United's Director of Aircraft Maintenance at DIA. In 2015, Herrera's Operating Manager was Mark Moore, and the Director of Aircraft Maintenance was Mario Terenzio. During the relevant time period for this case Herrera worked the "midnights" shift, which meant he reported to work at 8:45 pm and departed at 10:15 am the next morning. Herrera Dep. at 30:21–23. As an Aviation Maintenance Technician, Herrera worked out of a maintenance hangar rather than the public terminals.
While not a full-blown employment contract, United's Working Together Guidelines outline the broad standards it expects its employees to meet. Doc. 27–3 at i. ("The Working Together Guidelines are a series of harmonized policies, programs and other relevant information that apply to domestic, U.S. or GUM–based co-workers, except where otherwise noted or otherwise addressed by collective bargaining agreements, division manuals or work rules."). The Guidelines indicate that "United is an at-will employer, meaning that a co-worker may end his or her employment at any time[, and] this policy enables United to modify or terminate at its discretion and without notice or cause a, co-worker's employment status[.]" Id. at iv. They further note that "regular and predictable attendance is an essential function of every job and is extremely important to our collective success." Id. at 37. Finally, the guidelines note that "United is fully committed to complying with federal, state, and local governmental agencies with regard to retaining co-workers with arrest records provided they are able to freely perform their role and responsibilities." Id. They conclude, however, by specifying that "[e]very co-worker is responsible for maintain[ing] their eligibility to work for United by refraining from any activities that result in criminal convictions that may prohibit them from performing their duties for the company." Id.
Following his arrest, and during the pendency of his legal proceedings, Herrera had multiple conversations with Mark Moore, informing him as to the status of Herrera's case, and, on at least one occasion, discussing the possibility of Herrera participating in a work release program. Herrera Dep. at 48:18–21. Herrera interpreted Moore's comments during that conversation to suggest that United would not object to Herrera's participation in the work release program because other United employees had participated or were currently participating in a work release program. Id. Moore also approved Herrera's request to take some vacation days in order to attend his trial, and reviewed Herrera's timesheets to ensure that his time off was being accurately tracked.
In late August, following his sentencing, Herrera reached out to Mario Terenzio, the Director of Aircraft Maintenance at DIA to officially request that United support his participation in the court's work release program. Following this conversation, Terenzio contacted Linda Ross, United's Human Resources Manager for Technical Operations for Chicago and Denver. During this conversation, Terenzio informed Ross of Herrera's work release request, described the program, and noted that Herrera would be forced to wear a tracking device on his ankle while participating in the program.
On September 1, 2015, Terenzio and other management met with Herrera at DIA for an investigative meeting regarding Herrera's work release request. While the Record is somewhat unclear as to whether Terenzio discussed Herrera's work release request with Ross prior to this meeting,3 the Court, viewing the facts in the light most favorable to Herrera, will assume for the purposes of this motion that Terenzio and Ross first discussed Herrera's request prior to the September 1 meeting. Regardless, at the September 1 meeting, Terenzio took Herrera's badge, thereby precluding him from coming to work, and informed Herrera that Terenzio needed to "check with HR" as to whether United would support Herrera's participation in the work release program, and that Herrera would be placed on paid leave in the meantime. Herrera Dep. at 56:20–57:21.
After the September 1 meeting, Terenzio updated Ross on his meeting with Herrera and asked how he should proceed. It is undisputed that, as of this conversation, Ross "was unaware of any United employee who had been provided work release." Pl.'s Statement of Undisputed Material Facts ¶ 18 [Doc. 27]. Ross then proceeded to research whether United had previously addressed an employee's work release request. As part of this effort she spoke with her colleagues in United's Technical Operations department, as well as members of the labor relations and legal departments. Ross Dep. at 15:25–16–7. Ross's research did not reveal a single case where United considered—let alone supported—an employee's work release request. Based on this research, and in consultation with her superiors, Ross then informed Terenzio that "the company was not going to support the work release program for Mr. Herrera." Ross Dep. at 40:4–5.
It is unclear when exactly that decision was made, but Herrera was informed by letter on September 29, 2015 that he was being terminated effective immediately. Ex. E [Doc. 27–5]. The letter discussed Herrera's situation and United's "Working Together Guidelines" and employment policies, and announced categorically that "United does not support the work release program which impacts your ability to report to work." Id. The letter concluded that "After a thorough review of the facts, taking into consideration the seriousness of your actions, your disregard for the Company's policies and guidelines, and your inability to report to work absent a work release requirement, the decision has been made to terminate your employment with United Airlines, effective immediately." Id.
Herrera filed the instant lawsuit on August 1, 2016, alleging that United violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 by terminating him on the basis of his national origin. Doc. 1 . In support of his claim, Herrera purported to identify three "similarly situated white, non–Hispanic co-workers" who were allowed to participate in work release programs during 2014 and/or 2015: Byron Coffey, James Schneider, and Marty Mock. Complaint ¶ 11 [Doc. 1]. In addition to these employees, in response to United's motion for summary judgment Herrera also identifies Mark Leber, another Aircraft Mechanic in Denver whom Herrera alleges wore an ankle bracelet to work in 2009. Pl.'s Response to Def.'s Mot. for Summ. J. [Doc. 27] at 9.
Herrera's claim arises under Title VII, which makes it unlawful to "fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's race, color, religion, sex, or national origin[.]" 42 U.S.C. § 2000e–2. Because it will often be difficult for a plaintiff to point to direct...
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