Krouse v. American Sterilizer Co., CIV. A. 94-309-ERIE.
| Decision Date | 30 September 1996 |
| Docket Number | No. CIV. A. 94-309-ERIE.,No. CIV. A. 95-55-ERIE.,CIV. A. 94-309-ERIE.,CIV. A. 95-55-ERIE. |
| Citation | 984 F.Supp. 891 |
| Parties | Robert V. KROUSE, Plaintiff, v. AMERICAN STERILIZER COMPANY, Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, Michael J. Coughlin, Scott G. Lightner, John T. Hardin, Nanette S. Stafford, Jason M. Nuara, Defendants. Robert V. KROUSE, Plaintiff, v. AMERICAN STERILIZER COMPANY, Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Western District of Pennsylvania |
Wayne G. Johnson, Gifford, Lay & Johnson, Erie, PA, for Plaintiff.
Douglas G. Smith, Jackson, Lewis, Schnitzler & Krupman, Pittsburgh, Pa, Stephen X. Munger, Lisa A. Schreter, Laura Diane Rolnick, Jackson, Lewis, Schnitzler & Krupman, Atlanta, GA, John D. Petruso, Meadville, PA, for Defendants.
Plaintiff, Robert V. Krouse ("Krouse"), brings these consolidated actions against Defendants American Sterilizer Company, Michael J. Coughlin, Scott G. Lightner, John T. Hardin (collectively referred to as the "AMSCO Defendants"), and Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, Nanette S. Stafford, and Jason M. Nuara (collectively referred to as the "Liberty Mutual Defendants"), alleging violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101 et seq. ("ADA") and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 621 et seq. ("ADEA").1 This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331.
Presently pending before the Court are several motions, including motions for dismissal and/or for summary judgment by the Defendants, a motion on behalf of certain Defendants to strike Plaintiff's affidavit, and motions by the Plaintiff to reopen discovery and for leave to file a supplementary brief in opposition to summary judgment. For the reasons stated below, we will grant summary judgment in favor of Defendants, grant the motion to strike Plaintiff's affidavit, and deny Plaintiff's motion to reopen discovery and file supplementary briefs. We will deny all remaining motions as moot.
American Sterilizer Company ("AMSCO") is a Pennsylvania corporation engaged in the design, manufacturing, sale and servicing of hospital equipment, with its principal place of business located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and a production facility located in Erie, Pennsylvania. The Erie production facility engages in the manufacture of sterilizers.
Michael J. Coughlin ("Coughlin") is AMSCO's Manager of Factory/Labor Relations at the Erie production facility. He directs the movement of manpower within the plant and is involved with job postings and hirings, transfers, and union grievances with the plant.
G. Scott Lightner ("Lightner")2 is AMSCO's Production Control Manager. In this capacity he is responsible for supervising all aspects of production and ensuring that goods are completed in a timely manner according to customer requirements. Additionally, Lightner is responsible for all welding department operations and bears the title of Welding Department Manager.
John T. Hardin ("Hardin") is currently employed with AMSCO in the capacity of Director, Industrial Relations/Health and Safety Management.
Liberty Mutual Insurance Company ("Liberty Mutual") is AMSCO's workmen's compensation carrier. Nanette S. Stafford ("Stafford") is a registered nurse employed with Liberty Mutual. Jason M. Nuara ("Nuara") is a former claims adjuster for Liberty Mutual.
Krouse began employment with AMSCO on July 29, 1974 as a member of the bargaining unit represented by United Auto Worker's ("UAW") Local 832. Krouse held various jobs at AMSCO and in 1989 was awarded a position as a channel welder. These employees are responsible for welding channels to sterilizer shells in accordance with industry standards and specifications.
On January 14, 1991, Krouse suffered a work-related injury to his back. Following this injury, Krouse's advising health care professionals placed certain medical restrictions on the type of activity he could perform. From January 15, 1991 through May 20, 1994, AMSCO provided work assignments for Krouse that complied with his medical restrictions. During this time, Krouse had periods of total and partial disability.
From April 12, 1993 to June 21, 1993, Krouse was assigned to the Transitional Work Group ("TWG"), which provides lightduty work for employees who have suffered temporary injuries or illness and need time and/or a work hardening program before they can return to their former positions. TWG is only a temporary assignment; it is therefore not available to permanently disabled employees as an alternative to a permanent work assignment. While Krouse was assigned to TWG, AMSCO implemented requested modifications to the channel welder position in anticipation of his return. At the time of his assignment to TWG, neither Krouse nor any of his treating doctors claimed that he suffered a permanent disability.
From June 21, 1993 to April 1, 1994, and again from April 20 to May 20, 1994, Krouse performed his previous channel welder position as modified by AMSCO. Prior to his return in June, 1993, Krouse's medical restrictions had been modified and reduced by his doctor, who indicated that Krouse was able to perform the essential functions of the modified channel welder job with the accommodations implemented by AMSCO.
The essential job functions of a channel welder include actual channel welding, loading and changing the spools that hold the welding wire, fitting and tacking the channels to the shells, loading and unloading the racks, cleaning the channels and performing operator inspections. AMSCO states that these essential functions must be performed according to the Company's expected levels of performance and the employee must be capable of regular and predictable job attendance. AMSCO further states that additional job requirements are established in the performance and time standards set by AMSCO's industrial engineers for the completion of various work projects. Employees' performance percentages are calculated on a weekly basis by comparing the standard hours established by the Company for completion of each project with the actual direct hours worked by the employee on the project. AMSCO also records "Blue Labor," which is a record of the number of hours each week not counted toward direct labor or used in calculation of performance percentages. This includes down time on a machine or time when an employee is otherwise not able to work on production, such as time taken to receive medical treatment. Fully trained channel welders are expected to pursue the applicable performance percentage standards.
AMSCO claims that Krouse did not adequately perform the essential job functions of his modified channel welder position. Krouse's performance percentages from January 1 to May 20, 1994 averaged between sixteen (16) and thirty (30) percent of the expected standard, whereas the other fully trained channel welders performed at or above fifty percent of the expected performance standard.
On or about March 23 and 31, 1994, Krouse's direct supervisor, Charles Spencer, counseled him about his level of performance. Krouse responded during the March 31 conference that, since he was not living up to Spencer's expectations, he was going to visit First Aid and then go home. Dr. Young, Krouse's chiropractor and primary health care provider, excused Krouse from work the next day on the ground that he was totally disabled.
On April 20, 1994 Krouse received a doctor's release to return to work. That same day, Coughlin, Lightner, and Krouse reviewed the medical restrictions outlined in an evaluation completed by Dr. Young on April 15, 1994. Lightner and Coughlin were of the opinion that Krouse's job responsibilities fell well within the medical restrictions placed on him by Dr. Young. Krouse himself admitted that no further accommodations were necessary to allow him to perform the essential job functions of the channel welder position. Krouse also admitted that he was working to the highest percentage possible. Lightner and Hardin also met with Krouse at some point on April 20 and advised him that his current 20 to 30% level of efficiency was unacceptable. Krouse responded that AMSCO should put someone else into his work station to help him.
AMSCO also claims that Krouse was frequently absent from work and that these absences created problems in the Erie plant. From January 1994 to April 14, 1994, Krouse left the Erie plant abruptly and without prior notice more than twenty times to visit Dr. Young. During the eleven-month period in which he held the modified channel welder position, Krouse left the facility over fifty times for unscheduled visits with Dr. Young. During their April 20, 1994 meeting, Hardin and Lightner discussed with Krouse the amount of time that Krouse was spending on doctor visits and the fact that these unscheduled absences resulted in substantial production delays. Hardin and Lightner observed that the Company was often left without a welder to perform those critical production functions and that this, in turn, resulted in production backlogs in other departments. Their position was that Krouse should schedule appointments that could be managed. Krouse responded that he could not guarantee the frequency or the time of his doctor appointments because he had to be treated as he felt the need. However, he indicated his willingness to negotiate a job that better suited his situation. Hardin advised Krouse that, under the UAW/AMSCO agreement, the Company did not have the right to unilaterally create a job for him, as all new positions had to be open for bidding. Accordingly, Krouse was advised to return to work with the knowledge that the issues of his absences and efficiency were being addressed.
On May 3, 1994, the welding department completed another review of Krouse's efficiency and...
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