Kosereis v. Rhode Island

• Citation: 331 F.3d 207
• Decision Date: 12 June 2003
• Docket Number: No. 02-2358.,02-2358.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (1st Circuit)
• Parties: Ugurhan Akturk KOSEREIS, Plaintiff, Appellant, v. State of RHODE ISLAND, Department for Children, Youth & Families, Rhode Island Training School, et al., Defendants, Appellees.

Page 207

331 F.3d 207

Ugurhan Akturk KOSEREIS, Plaintiff, Appellant, v. State of RHODE ISLAND, Department for Children, Youth & Families, Rhode Island Training School, et al., Defendants, Appellees.

No. 02-2358.

United States Court of Appeals, First Circuit.

Heard April 7, 2003.

Decided June 12, 2003.

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Richard J. Savage for appellant.

Rebecca Tedford Partington, Deputy Chief, and Patrick Lynch, Attorney General, Office of the Attorney General, for appellees.

Before TORRUELLA, Circuit Judge, BOWNES, Senior Circuit Judge, and LYNCH, Circuit Judge.

BOWNES, Senior Circuit Judge.

Plaintiff-appellant, Ugurhan Akturk Kosereis ("Kosereis"), brought a discrimination claim in the district court against his employer, the State of Rhode Island Department for Children, Youth and Families, Rhode Island Training School ("the Training School"), and the director of the Training School in his official capacity. Kosereis alleged that the defendants discriminated against him based on his religion and national origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ("Title VII"), 42 U.S.C. § 2000e, and various state laws. The district court granted the defendants' motion for summary judgment because Kosereis failed to produce sufficient evidence that he suffered from discrimination. Although the district court's decision contained legal errors, we affirm.

I. BACKGROUND

When reviewing a district court's grant of summary judgment, we state the facts in the light most favorable to the opposing party and draw all reasonable inferences in his favor. See Sands v. Ridefilm Corp., 212 F.3d 657, 661 (1st Cir.2000). Kosereis is a Turkish-born Muslim who works as a vocational teacher at the Training School. The Training School is a juvenile correction facility that contains both classrooms and residences. Kosereis has worked for the Training School since 1975. During his tenure, he has taught woodworking, autobody, and at the times relevant to this appeal, welding and auto mechanics.

Kosereis has experienced difficulties with tardiness and absenteeism. In 1981, the Training School issued Kosereis a reminder about taking excessive sick leave without proper documentation. The problem became worse in the mid-1990s when Arlene Chorney ("Chorney") was hired as principal of the Training School. According to Kosereis, his discriminatory treatment "started the day Dr. Chorney became principal."

Chorney instituted a new work schedule that, in Kosereis' words, was "very complicated." Kosereis claims that the complexity of the work schedule caused him to become confused about when he was required to report for work. In 1995, for example, disciplinary proceedings were initiated against Kosereis because he missed work without notifying the proper personnel. In 1996, Kosereis was verbally disciplined for being late to a class. In 1997, Kosereis was given a written reprimand for failing to report to his first period class. In 1998, Kosereis received a disciplinary letter for falsifying his time records. This reprimand, however, was later expunged from his record. In 1999, Kosereis was verbally reprimanded after he failed to report for work in the morning.

It is clear that Chorney made efforts to clarify the work schedule. As part of the verbal reprimand in 1996, Chorney explained the schedule to Kosereis in the presence of his union representative. In Kosereis' 1997 letter, Chorney again offered Kosereis help:

As a professional, you are expected to arrive to school and classes on time. You are also expected to follow your schedule. If you are unable to understand your schedule, I will assist you further.

In addition to the alleged complicated work schedule, Kosereis claims that Chorney was responsible for a host of other problems. He says that Chorney did not give him sufficient funding, adequate supplies or proper facilities to teach auto mechanics. Kosereis was required to work in a particular building that he says lacked ventilation and was dirty. Chorney denied Kosereis' request for a sabbatical to travel to Turkey and study that country's juvenile justice system. Instead, Kosereis was granted a sabbatical to take courses in Rhode Island. Kosereis also says that Chorney did not do enough to stop students from calling him "turkey" and teachers teasing him about his Turkish food in the lunchroom.

In 1995, Kosereis was laid off and soon after initiated an administrative appeal with the Rhode Island Commissioner of Education ("the Commissioner"). While the appeal was pending, Kosereis filed a claim with the Rhode Island Commission for Human Rights ("RICHR") and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") alleging that his job was terminated because of discrimination. The EEOC ultimately issued Kosereis a right to sue letter, but the RICHR did not.

In 1996, Kosereis' administrative appeal of his lay-off was decided. The Commissioner determined that Kosereis was laid off for "good and just cause," but nevertheless reinstated him with backpay because he did not receive a timely notice of his lay-off.

Two years after Kosereis returned to work, he filed another set of claims with the RICHR and the EEOC. This time, he alleged that Chorney's disciplinary actions stemming from his absenteeism constituted discrimination. Kosereis claimed he was disciplined in retaliation for filing his earlier claims of discrimination. Both the RICHR and the EEOC issued right to sue letters.

Having properly navigated the administrative waters of the RICHR and the EEOC, Kosereis filed a complaint in the district court. He alleged that the defendants violated Title VII by creating a hostile work environment and denying him equal terms and conditions of employment because of his religion and national origin. Kosereis then amended his complaint and added the allegation of retaliation. Kosereis also raised claims under the Rhode Island Civil Rights Act, R.I. Gen. Laws § 42-112-1 (1998), and the Rhode Island Fair Employment Practices Act, R.I. Gen. Laws § 28-5-1 (2000).

After discovery, the defendants moved for summary judgment. The district court referred the case to a Magistrate Judge who recommended that the defendants' motion be granted. The district court adopted the Magistrate Judge's recommendation and granted summary judgment in favor of the defendants on both the federal and state law claims. Kosereis filed a timely appeal, but challenged only the district court's rulings regarding the federal law claims. It is to these rulings we now turn.

II. DISCUSSION

We review a district court's grant of summary judgment de novo. See Muniz Cortes v. Intermedics, Inc., 229 F.3d 12, 14 (1st Cir.2000). Summary judgment for the defendants is appropriate when the evidence is so one-sided that no reasonable person could find in favor of the plaintiff. See Kearney v. Town of Wareham, 316 F.3d 18, 22 (1st Cir.2002). There are four issues we must address in this appeal: whether Kosereis was precluded from litigating issues pertaining to his lay-off; whether Kosereis was treated differently than other co-workers because of his religion and national origin; whether Kosereis suffered from a hostile work environment; and whether Kosereis was subjected to discriminatory retaliation.

A. Preclusion

Our initial inquiry is whether Kosereis can, as part of this case, delve into matters related to his 1995 lay-off. The lay-off is important to Kosereis in this litigation because he believes it helps establish that he was subjected to disparate treatment, a topic which we will discuss later.

The district court held that the doctrine of res judicata barred Kosereis from litigating any issues related to his lay-off. "Under federal law, the doctrine of res judicata dictates that a final judgment on the merits of an action precludes the parties or their privies from relitigating issues that were or could have been raised in that action." Perez v. Volvo Car Corp., 247 F.3d 303, 311 (1st Cir.2001) (quoting Allen v. McCurry, 449 U.S. 90, 94, 101 S.Ct. 411, 66 L.Ed.2d 308 (1980)). The district court reasoned that Kosereis' administrative appeal of the lay-off, and the Commissioner's subsequent ruling that he was laid off for "good and just cause," amounted to a final judgment on the merits for purposes of res judicata. This ruling was incorrect.

The critical part of the district court's ruling stated that "[t]he doctrine of res judicata applies to a decision of a quasi-judicial administrative tribunal," such as the decision by the Commissioner in the present case. To support this statement, the district court cited to Department of Corrections of State of Rhode Island v. Tucker, 657 A.2d 546, 549 (R.I.1995), in which the Rhode Island Supreme Court held that Rhode Island state courts give preclusive effect to quasi-judicial administrative tribunals.

The district court was correct in looking to state law for answers to questions regarding the preclusive effect of state administrative decisions. Federal common law generally requires that federal courts accord the decisions of state administrative agencies acting in a judicial capacity "the same preclusive effect to which it would be entitled in the State's courts." Univ. of Tenn. v. Elliott, 478 U.S. 788, 799, 106 S.Ct. 3220, 92 L.Ed.2d 635 (1986). But that is not the end of the matter. Even if state courts apply res judicata to state administrative decisions, federal courts will only follow suit if doing so is consistent with Congress' intent in enacting the federal statute at issue. See Astoria Fed. Sav. and Loan Ass'n v. Solimino, 501 U.S. 104, 110, 111 S.Ct. 2166, 115 L.Ed.2d 96 (1991) (citing Elliott, 478 U.S. at 796, 106 S.Ct. 3220). This means that when the preclusive effect of a state administrative decision is in question, the central inquiry is one of federal statutory interpretation. See Thomas v. Contoocook Valley Sch. Dist., 150 F.3d 31, 38 (1st Cir.1998). In this case, the district...