Lindemann v. Mobil Oil Corp.
| Decision Date | 26 March 1998 |
| Docket Number | No. 96-3930,96-3930 |
| Parties | 21 Employee Benefits Cas. 2825 Diane L. LINDEMANN, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. MOBIL OIL CORPORATION, Defendant-Appellee. |
| Court | U.S. Court of Appeals — Seventh Circuit |
Frank P. Tighe, III (argued), Oak Brook, IL, for Plaintiff-Appellant.
Patrick J. Ahern (argued), Baker & McKenzie, Chicago, IL, for Defendant-Appellee.
Before COFFEY, EASTERBROOK and ROVNER, Circuit Judges.
The plaintiff-appellant, Diane L. Lindemann, brought a wrongful termination action against her former employer, the Mobil Oil Corporation ("Mobil"), alleging that Mobil terminated her employment in violation of section 510 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA"), 29 U.S.C. § 1140. Mobil filed a motion for summary judgment, and the court granted the same on September 23, 1996. The court also denied Lindemann's motion for partial summary judgment on issues relating to Mobil's liability. On October 23, 1996, the court denied Lindemann's Rule 59 motion for reconsideration based upon newly issued case law, and granted her an extension for filing an appeal. Lindemann appeals and we affirm.
Lindemann joined Mobil in 1977 and worked as an inventory control analyst at the Cicero Lube Plant in Cicero, Illinois, and while employed, participated in Mobil's employee benefit plan, which provided that employees who were disabled by injury or sickness ("short-term disability") not related to work were given leave and paid their base salary during the period of disability. 1 During Lindemann's period of employment, she received a copy of the disability benefits plan, which set forth in detail the requirements of the short-term disability program. Specifically, the plan provided that in order to qualify for short-term disability benefits, employees were required to: (1) notify their supervisors of the short-term disability as soon as possible; (2) obtain their supervisors' approval of their absence as "an excused absence due to disability"; and (3) provide medical evidence of the disability when requested. Under the short-term disability plan, employees earned benefits that increased with their duration of service to the company. Lindemann was entitled to the maximum short-term disability benefit, twelve weeks of absence due to disability or sickness with full-pay and, thereafter, up to forty weeks of absence at half-pay, because she had been employed by Mobil for more than ten years.
In addition to the short-term disability plan, Mobil required its employees to observe a "no fault" attendance policy, under which an employee could be disciplined for absences, regardless of whether or not they were "excused" absences as provided for under the short-term disability plan. 2 The policy involved a three-step process of counseling and, if necessary, discipline for absences or tardiness. The policy provided specifically:
1. Based on the circumstances and past record, an employee should normally be counseled when five (5) occurrences of absence have occurred within the past twelve months. A memo of this counseling action should be addressed to the file. The employee should be advised that this performance problem will also be addressed in the annual appraisal.
2. If an employee fails to improve after counseling or to sustain improvement in subsequent periods, the counseling should be repeated. (Normally, sustained improvement is no additional absence within 3 months of the incident that precipitated the counseling.) This second action should be confirmed in writing, outlining the nature of the attendance problem, stressing the importance of improving and specifying a time frame and objective for improvement.
3. If an employee again fails to meet the objectives for improvement, appropriate additional corrective action should be considered. (e.g. additional letters, termination, etc.)
All absences, including "excused" sickness and disability absences provided for in the short-term disability plan are counted towards compliance with the attendance policy. 3 Mobil instructed managers to consider an employee's absences in making disciplinary decisions.
In December of 1992, when Lindemann asked for three days off for laser surgery for treatment of a cataract, her then supervisor, Matt Burbach ("Burbach"), approved the request. During the following year and a half, Lindemann called in sick on 25 days. On each of these occasions, she received her full base pay, reflecting the fact that Mobil considered her absences "excused absences due to disability" under the benefit plan.
Lindemann was admittedly late for work on many occasions. Because of her tardiness, she failed to attend promptly the plant's daily production meeting at the start of the day. She, along with other key plant employees, was obligated to attend these meetings at the beginning of each day. On February 5, 1993, Lindemann was confronted by Burbach concerning her inability to report for production meetings in a timely fashion, in spite of the fact that the meeting time had been dropped back and rescheduled to 8:45 a.m. rather than 8:30 a.m. in order that it might accommodate her. Lindemann responded by telling him that he could "stick [the meeting] up [his] butt." Because of her excessive absences, as well as her continual pattern of tardiness, Burbach placed Lindemann in the Mobil "Goals & Objectives" program on March 22, 1993. 4
However, because of Lindemann's continued absenteeism, on July 23, 1993, Burbach counseled Lindemann and gave her a copy of the attendance policy. Burbach warned her that if she failed to improve her attendance record, she could be further disciplined or discharged. Burbach also repeatedly informed Lindemann that even though her absences were excused under Mobil's employee benefit plan, they were nonetheless recorded and counted against her for the purposes of the attendance policy. Indeed, Lindemann admitted that she was aware of this procedure.
On November 4, 1993, Lindemann was issued a "Final Letter of Warning" after five additional absences during the month of August, 1993. In April of 1994, the plaintiff's new supervisor, Janet Lieb ("Lieb"), told Lindemann that her salary increase was low because of her continual attendance problems. Finally, on the morning of May 31, 1994, Lindemann telephoned Lieb from her home and asked if she could be excused that day for unscheduled vacation (Lindemann was not requesting a sick day). 5 When Lieb told Lindemann that she could not be excused because Lieb needed Lindemann to work that day, even if she arrived late, Lindemann replied that she was ill and would have to remain at home. The following day, June 1, Lindemann again called Lieb and asked for another day off due to illness.
On June 2, 1994, Lieb called her supervisor, Jim Lewis ("Lewis"), the Cicero Plant Supervisor, and advised him that Lindemann's pattern of absences was causing production problems at the plant. Lieb then explained what had happened on May 31 and June 1. Lindemann's file reflected that she had been counseled for attendance problems during 1993 on March 19, July 23, July 31, and October 26. The file also contained the "Final Letter of Warning" dated November 4, 1993. Lewis and Lieb agreed that Lindemann's poor attendance record was grounds for termination and Lieb drafted Lindemann's termination letter. 6
On June 6, 1994, the plaintiff was dismissed for absenteeism in violation of the attendance policy. Lindemann's letter of termination provided in part:
A review of your attendance record for the past 24 months illustrates the factors which resulted in your termination:
December 29"31, 1992 Absent 3 days
January 18"21, 1993 Absent 4 days
March 15"17, 1993 Absent 3 days
July 19"22, 1993 Absent 4 days
August 24"27, 1993 Absent 4 days
November 4, 1993 FINAL WARNING
LETTER FOR CHRONIC
TARDINESS/
ATTENDANCE
February 23"March 4, 1994 Absent 8 days
Mobil agrees that each absence cited in the termination letter was an "excused absence due to disability" approved by the company pursuant to the short-term disability benefits program. The termination letter also cited tardiness as a reason for dismissal, stating "your absences and lateness causes problems ... in scheduling your work" and "[p]art of your job responsibility is to report to work regularly and on time."
On August 18, 1994, Lindemann filed suit in federal court, alleging that Mobil fired her in retaliation for her use of short-term disability benefits. Mobil argued in a summary judgment motion that Lindemann was terminated for her absences, not for her use of benefits, and that excessive absenteeism is a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for discharge, even when excused as required under the short-term disability plan. The court granted Mobil's motion, finding that Lindemann was required to pursue internal administrative procedures before seeking recourse in the courts. See Lindemann v. Mobil Oil Corp., 888 F.Supp. 859 (N.D.Ill.1995). This Court affirmed the trial court's ruling in Lindemann v. Mobil Oil Corp., 79 F.3d 647 (7th Cir.1996). Thereafter, Lindemann submitted an internal administrative complaint to Mobil, which was denied on February 14, 1996. Before receiving the denial, Lindemann commenced this action, and the court granted Mobil's motion for summary judgment.
Lindemann asserts that the district court erred in granting Mobil's summary judgment motion because Mobil was guilty of violating section 510 of ERISA, 29 U.S.C. § 1140, when it intentionally discharged her for absenteeism. Lindemann argues that she was entitled to use sick days with impunity, and in this case, Mobil had excused and approved her absences as "absences due to disability."
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