Hudson v. Teamsters Local Union No. 957

• Decision Date: 23 March 1982
• Docket Number: No. C-3-80-529.,C-3-80-529.
• Parties: Calvin HUDSON, Plaintiff, v. TEAMSTERS LOCAL UNION NO. 957, and United Parcel Service, Inc., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of Ohio

536 F. Supp. 1138

Calvin HUDSON, Plaintiff, v. TEAMSTERS LOCAL UNION NO. 957, and United Parcel Service, Inc., Defendants.

No. C-3-80-529.

United States District Court, S. D. Ohio, W. D.

March 23, 1982.

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Robert K. Handelman, Columbus, Ohio, for plaintiff.

Sorrell Logothetis, Daniel N. Kosanovich, Dayton, Ohio, J. Alan Lips, Taft, Stettenius & Hollister, Cincinnati, Ohio, for defendants.

DECISION AND ENTRY ON PENDING MOTIONS; DEFENDANT TEAMSTERS' MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SUSTAINED IN PART AND OVERRULED IN PART; DEFENDANT UNITED PARCEL SERVICE'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT SUSTAINED IN PART AND OVERRULED IN PART; CONFERENCE CALL SET TO DETERMINE NEW TRIAL DATE AND OTHER DATES

RICE, District Judge.

This matter came on to be heard by the Court upon motions for summary judgment filed by the Defendants, Teamsters Local Union No. 957 (Teamsters) (Doc. # 22) and the United Parcel Service, Inc. (UPS) (Doc. # 26). The Teamsters Local has moved for summary judgment with respect to Counts II, III, IV and V of the amended complaint filed by the Plaintiff, Calvin Hudson. UPS has moved for summary judgment with respect to Counts I, IV, V and VI of the amended complaint. For the reasons set forth below, the motions are sustained with respect to Counts I, II and V, in part, of the amended complaint. The motions are overruled with respect to Counts III, IV, V, in part, and VI of said amended complaint.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

Plaintiff was employed as a package delivery driver with UPS from 1969 to 1979, and was a member of the Teamsters during that period. On April 25, 1979, Plaintiff had a truck accident at a customer's residence while making a delivery. He admits that he did not report the accident to UPS, but characterizes it as a "minor incident" and argues that he was never expected to report such incidents. UPS discharged Plaintiff on May 2, 1979, ostensibly for having failed to report the accident.

Plaintiff thereafter filed an unfair labor practice charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), alleging that UPS had discharged him due to his union activities. The Regional Director of the NLRB dismissed the charge, and the Office of Appeals of the NLRB denied Plaintiff's appeal of that decision.

Shortly after his discharge, Plaintiff also filed a grievance protesting his discharge, pursuant to the collective bargaining agreement between the Teamsters and UPS. Under this procedure, Plaintiff's grievance was first presented to the six-member Ohio Joint State Committee, on May 15, 1979. Plaintiff was represented by the Union at that time. The Committee came to an equally-divided vote on Plaintiff's grievance, and his claim was advanced to the Joint Area Committee (JAC), where Plaintiff was once again represented by the Union. His grievance was denied by the JAC on August 1, 1979.

On October 12, 1979, Plaintiff filed charges of discrimination against the Defendants with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). As required by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., the charges were referred to the applicable state agency, the Ohio Civil Rights Commission (OCRC). The Regional Director of the EEOC issued a "right-to-sue" letter (with respect to the Teamsters) on August 29, 1980, which Plaintiff alleges to have received on September 8, 1980. He filed his complaint in this Court on December 8, 1980.

The original complaint was divided into five counts. Count I alleged that UPS violated the collective bargaining agreement through an unjustified discharge and "harassment" prior to the discharge, and that the discharge was wrongfully premised on Plaintiff's exercise of his Section 7 rights under the National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 157. Count II alleges that the Teamsters violated its duty of fair representation, under § 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA), 29 U.S.C. § 185, by its failure to properly represent Plaintiff in the grievance procedure. Count III is a Title VII charge against the Teamsters, and Count IV alleges that both the Teamsters and UPS discriminated on the basis of race, violative of 42 U.S.C. § 1981. Count V alleges that both Defendants conspired to deprive Plaintiff of his civil rights on the basis of his race, thus violating 42 U.S.C. § 1985(3). After receiving a "right-to-sue" letter from EEOC, permitting him to proceed against the UPS, Plaintiff moved to file an amended complaint. This Court sustained the motion on July 17, 1981. Count VI of the amended complaint alleges that UPS also violated Title VII. Plaintiff prayed for injunctive, declaratory, and monetary relief, and the amended complaint properly invoked the jurisdiction of this Court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1343(3)-(4), 29 U.S.C. § 185 et seq., and 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq.

II. MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

Both Defendants duly filed answers to the original and amended complaint, and moved for summary judgment pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 56. Pursuant to Rule 56, both Plaintiff and Defendants have filed affidavits with their memoranda. (Docs. 22, 26 & 27). For convenience, this Court will consider said motions together. On a Rule 56 summary judgment motion, the burden is on the moving party to show conclusively that there exists no genuine issue as to any material fact, considering the evidence most favorably to the party against whom the motion is directed. Heheman v. E. W. Scripps Co., 661 F.2d 1115, 1127 (6th Cir. 1981); Watkins v. Northwestern Ohio Tractor Pullers, 630 F.2d 1155, 1158 (6th Cir. 1980). With this standard in mind, this Court now considers the summary judgment motions with respect to each count in the Plaintiff's complaint.

1. Count I: MOTION SUSTAINED

UPS has moved for summary judgment with respect to Count I.

The first count in the amended complaint alleges that the discharge by UPS violated both the collective bargaining agreement and Plaintiff's rights to engage in union-protected activity under 29 U.S.C. § 157. Defendant correctly points out that contesting an alleged discharge for union-related activity is within the exclusive jurisdiction of the NLRB, and cannot be brought under § 301 unless said discharge also violates a provision of the collective bargaining agreement. Hines v. Anchor Motor Freight, Inc., 424 U.S. 554, 561-62, 96 S.Ct. 1048, 1054-55, 47 L.Ed.2d 231 (1976); Motor Coach Employees v. Lockridge, 403 U.S. 274, 284-93, 91 S.Ct. 1909, 1916-21, 29 L.Ed.2d 473 (1971); Ruzicka v. General Motors Corp., 649 F.2d 1207 (6th Cir. 1981). The agreement between the UPS and the Teamsters, however, does contain a provision prohibiting the employer from discriminating against an employee based on his union membership or activities. (Doc. 22, exh. A, p. 26). Such discriminatory conduct could include a discharge premised on union activities, as Plaintiff alleges herein. Thus, both allegations in Count I are cognizable under § 301 and will be so treated by this Court.

The main point of contention in Counts I and II is whether Plaintiff's § 301 claim was timely filed in this Court. Congress did not enact a statute of limitations governing actions filed under § 301, and to determine the timeliness of such suits, a federal court must refer to the "appropriate state statute of limitations." International Union, UAW v. Hoosier Cardinal Corp., 383 U.S. 696, 704-05, 86 S.Ct. 1107, 1112-1113, 16 L.Ed.2d 192 (1966). The Supreme Court recently decided a case providing this Court substantial guidance on which Ohio statute of limitation should be applied in this case. In United Parcel Service, Inc. v. Mitchell, 451 U.S. 56, 101 S.Ct. 1559, 67 L.Ed.2d 732 (1981), the Court characterized a § 301 suit, similar to the one herein, as analogous to an action to vacate an arbitration award, id. at 61, 101 S.Ct. at 1563, and held that a New York statute of limitations on bringing suit to vacate such awards was applicable. Id. at 64, 101 S.Ct. at 1565.

Plaintiff and the Defendants do not seriously contest the relevance of Mitchell to the choice of a statute of limitation in this action. Mitchell clearly directs this Court to apply O.R.C. § 2711.13, which permits a plaintiff three months to file suit to set aside an arbitration award, rather than, for example, O.R.C. § 2305.07, which provides a six year statute of limitations for causes of action arising under a statute. What the parties do contest is whether Mitchell should be given retroactive effect so as to apply to the cause herein. Since Plaintiff filed his complaint in this Court over a year and four months after the grievance procedure was completed, applying the Mitchell case and O.R.C. § 2711.13 retroactively would bar his § 301 cause of action.

The Court itself in Mitchell applied the holding to the plaintiff in the case, determining that his § 301 suit was time-barred, and made no reference to the retroactivity issue. Similarly, several courts, including one within this District, have applied Mitchell to § 301 suits pending when Mitchell was handed down, and have not discussed the question of retroactivity. See, Carpenters, Local 1020 v. FMC Corp., 658 F.2d 1285 (9th Cir. 1981); Sear v. Cadillac Automobile Co., 654 F.2d 4 (1st Cir. 1981); Davidson v. Roadway Express, Inc., 650 F.2d 902 (7th Cir. 1981); D'Andrea v. American Postal Workers, No. C-1-78-520, Slip op. (S.D.Ohio, Aug. 5, 1981). On the other hand, some courts have squarely addressed the retroactivity of Mitchell, and six decisions have held that Mitchell should be applied retroactively, see, Service Employees Local 36 v. Office Center Services, Inc., 670 F.2d 404 (3rd Cir. 1982); Brain v. Roadway Express, Inc., No. C80-2338, Slip op. (N.D. Ohio Dec. 3, 1981); McCoy v. Truck Drivers Local 100, 526 F.Supp. 1256 (S.D.Ohio 1981); Taylor v. Spector Freightway System, Inc., No. C-2-78-1227 (S.D.Ohio Feb. 11, 1982); Delcostello v. Teamsters, 524 F.Supp. 721 (D.Md.1981); Kikos v. Teamsters, 526...