Martin v. Barnesville Exempted Village School District Bd. of Edu.

• Decision Date: 14 March 2000
• Docket Number: PLAINTIFF-APPELLANT,DEFENDANT-APPELLEE,No. 99-3263,99-3263
• Citation: 209 F.3d 931
• Parties: (6th Cir. 2000) DENNIS L. MARTIN,, v. BARNESVILLE EXEMPTED VILLAGE SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION, Argued:
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Sixth Circuit

Page 931

209 F.3d 931 (6th Cir. 2000)

DENNIS L. MARTIN, PLAINTIFF-APPELLANT, v. BARNESVILLE EXEMPTED VILLAGE SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD OF EDUCATION, DEFENDANT-APPELLEE.

No. 99-3263

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SIXTH CIRCUIT

Argued: March 14, 2000

Decided and Filed: April 21, 2000

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio at Columbus. No. 97-00992--Algenon L. Marbley, District Judge.

Samuel N. Lillard, Mowery & Youell, Dublin, Ohio, for Appellant.

John C. Albert, Crabbe, Brown, Jones, Potts & Schmidt, Columbus, Ohio, for Appellee.

Before: Merritt, Daughtrey, and MAGILL,^* Circuit Judges.

OPINION

Merritt, Circuit Judge.

Plaintiff Dennis L. Martin appeals the district court's order granting summary judgment in favor of defendant, Barnesville Exempted Village School District Board of Education. On appeal, plaintiff alleges that defendant discriminated against him on the basis of a perceived disability - namely alcoholism - in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. and Ohio Revised Code § 4112. Because the record demonstrates that plaintiff did not receive an assignment as a school bus driver because he was caught drinking on the job, no violation of the ADA occurred. We therefore affirm the judgment of the district court.

Plaintiff was hired by defendant as a bus driver in 1984. He is a member of the union, known as the Barnesville Association of Classified Employees, OEA/NEA. In 1991 he bid for and was awarded a custodial position with defendant. Shortly after beginning his custodial duties, Robert Miller, the president of the school board, observed plaintiff drinking beer while on the job at an elementary school. When confronted by Miller, plaintiff denied the allegation and left the building, even though his shift was not over. Upon completion of an investigation, the school board recommended that plaintiff be terminated for consuming alcohol at work, leaving his post and for conduct in violation of the stated "drug-free workplace" policy. Plaintiff ultimately admitted that he had been drinking a beer while on duty on school grounds. After intervention by the union, plaintiff was allowed to keep his position if he signed a document entitled "Last Chance Agreement." The terms of the agreement required plaintiff (1) to admit to an unspecified "drinking problem;" (2) successfully to complete an approved alcohol rehabilitation program; (3) to accept a four-week suspension without pay and (4) to submit to alcohol and drug testing upon request for two years. Plaintiff signed the agreement and there is no dispute that he has at all times complied with the terms of the Last Chance Agreement. (Plaintiff was never asked to submit to a drug test during the two-year period and defendant acknowledges that it never had any reason to believe that plaintiff abused alcohol during that period.)

In December 1994, plaintiff submitted bids for a part-time bus driver position and a part-time bus garage worker position. Although plaintiff was the most senior worker to bid for the positions, defendant rejected him, citing the 1991 beer incident. Plaintiff filed a grievance with the union and in August 1995, after a binding arbitration hearing in compliance with the union's collective bargaining agreement with defendant, plaintiff was awarded the bus driver and garage worker positions on which he had bid in December 1994. The arbitrator based his decision solely on the terms of the bargaining agreement between the union and defendant, finding that the school board had not demonstrated that plaintiff posed a safety threat and therefore the seniority provisions of the labor agreement could not be overridden. Arbitrator's Opinion and Award, Aug. 10, 1995.

Defendant appealed the arbitrator's decision to the Belmont County Common Pleas Court, which reversed and vacated the labor arbitration award. In the Matter of Barnesville Exempted Village School Dist. Bd. of Educ. v. Miller, 1997 Ohio App. LEXIS 5253 (Belmont Cty. 1997). On appeal, the Ohio Court of Appeals reversed the Court of Common Pleas and reinstated the arbitrator's award. Barnesville Exempted Village School Dist. Bd. of Educ. v. Barnesville Ass'n of Classified Employees, 123 Ohio App. 3d 272, 704 N.E.2d 36 (1997). The Court of Appeals reversed the Court of Common Pleas, holding that the arbitrator's award must be upheld unless the decision bears "no connection" with the labor contract. 123 Ohio App. 3d at 276, 704 N.E.2d at 38. The Court of Appeals found that the arbitrator carefully weighed the competing concerns of safety and seniority and the state court could not overrule the decision simply because it disagreed with the outcome. Id. Defendant appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court, which did not allow the discretionary appeal. Barnesville Exempted Village School Dist. Bd. of Educ. v. Barnesville Ass'n of Classified Employees, 81 Ohio St. 3d 1421, 688 N.E.2d 1046 (1998). Plaintiff was awarded the positions he sought in December 1994¹ and began his duties in February 1998. He was not awarded back pay or any other remuneration for lost wages or benefits.

Plaintiff filed this suit under the federal and state disability discrimination laws in September 1997, during the pendency of the arbitration proceedings. Both parties have filed briefs asserting that the arbitration proceeding under the collective bargaining agreement does not bar our review of plaintiff's federal discrimination claim. They cite Wright v. Universal Maritime Serv. Corp., 525 U.S. 70 (1998) (terms of collective bargaining agreement must contain "clear and unmistakable" language waiving specific federal statutory rights) and Bratten v. SSI Servs., Inc. 185 F.3d 625 (6th Cir. 1999)(same). We therefore do not decide the res judicata issue. We note that because plaintiff was subsequently awarded the positions he sought in his federal complaint as a result of the arbitration proceedings, plaintiff's request in his complaint that he be awarded the positions of bus driver and garage worker is moot and the only issue before us is whether plaintiff should be awarded compensatory and punitive damages, including back pay for the period from December 1994 to February 1998, due to defendant's alleged discrimination.

To prevail in a disability discrimination case, plaintiff must present either direct evidence of discrimination or present a prima facie case of discrimination. To establish a prima facie case under the Americans with Disabilities Act, plaintiff must show: (1) he was "disabled" under the ADA; (2) he was otherwise qualified to perform the essential functions of the job; (3) he suffered an adverse employment action and (4) a nondisabled person replaced him. Monette v. Electronic Data Sys. Corp., 90 F.3d 1173, 1186 (6th Cir. 1996). Once the plaintiff establishes a prima facie case, the burden shifts to the employer to articulate a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for the adverse employment action. The burden then shifts back to plaintiff to demonstrate that the employer's stated reason is a pretext for...