Nixon v. City of Junction City, Kan.

• Decision Date: 27 September 1988
• Docket Number: Civ. A. No. 87-2321-0.
• Citation: 707 F. Supp. 473
• Parties: James E. NIXON, et al., Plaintiffs, v. The CITY OF JUNCTION CITY, KANSAS, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Kansas

707 F. Supp. 473

James E. NIXON, et al., Plaintiffs, v. The CITY OF JUNCTION CITY, KANSAS, Defendant.

Civ. A. No. 87-2321-0.

United States District Court, D. Kansas.

September 27, 1988.

Michael P. McKone, Roger L. Unruh, McKone & Unruh, Chartered, Junction City, Kan., for plaintiffs.

Anthony F. Rupp, Shugart, Thomson & Kilroy, P.C., Overland Park, Kan., W. Terrence Kilroy, Jack L. Campbell, Shugart, Thomson & Kilroy, P.C., Kansas City, Mo., J. Steven Pigg, Fisher, Patterson, Sayler & Smith, Topeka, Kan., for defendant.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

EARL E. O'CONNOR, Chief Judge.

This action arises from an employment dispute between the City of Junction City, Kansas ("City") and thirty-one members of the City's police force (21 patrolmen, 3 lieutenants, 3 sergeants and 4 investigators). Plaintiffs claim the City has violated the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 U.S.C. §§ 201 et seq. (FLSA), by failing to pay overtime. Additionally, plaintiffs make claims for overtime pay under both a quantum merit and an implied contract theory. The matter is now before the court on the parties' cross motions for summary judgment.

In considering the parties' motions for summary judgment, the court must examine all the evidence in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party. Barber v. General Elec. Co., 648 F.2d 1272, 1276 n. 1 (10th Cir.1981). According to the federal rules, summary judgment is proper only when "there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and ... the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). Under this rule, the initial burden is on the moving party to show the court "that there is an absence of evidence to support the nonmoving party's case." Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 325, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2554, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). The moving party's burden may be met when that party identifies those portions of the record which demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact. Id. at 323, 106 S.Ct. at 2553.

Once the moving party has met these requirements, the burden shifts to the party resisting the motion. The nonmoving party must "make a showing sufficient to establish the existence of an element essential to that party's case, and on which that party will bear the burden of proof at trial." Id. at 322, 106 S.Ct. at 2552; see also Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 249, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2510, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). The party resisting the motion "may not rest upon the mere allegations or denials of his pleadings ..." to avoid summary judgment. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248, 106 S.Ct. at 2510. The mere existence of a scintilla of evidence will not avoid summary judgment; there must be sufficient evidence on which a jury could reasonably find for the nonmoving party. Id. at 251, 106 S.Ct. at 2511 (quoting Improvement Company v. Munson, 81 U.S. (14 Wall.) 442, 448, 20 L.Ed. 867 (1872)).

For the purposes of these motions, the uncontroverted facts are as follows. Plaintiffs are employees-at-will. Rules and policies governing overtime compensation are contained in the City Employees' Manual. During the period covered by this lawsuit, defendant paid time and a half for overtime hours worked in excess of forty hours per week, unless the excess time was court time, in which case the officers were paid only their regular hourly wages. Defendant concedes that it is liable under the FLSA for patrolmen's court time in excess of forty hours per week for the period April 15, 1986, to June 2, 1987.

Plaintiffs' meal periods are governed by written rules, contained in the general orders of the Junction City Police Department, and unwritten rules which have come to be accepted over a period of time. These rules include: (1) "Patrol officers shall be limited to one lunch period and two coffee (rest) breaks in any one tour of duty; none of which may be taken during the first full hour of the tour of duty. Lunch periods shall not exceed 30 minutes and coffee (rest) breaks shall be limited to 15 minutes each. One coffee (rest) break may be taken during the first four hours of duty and one during the last four hours of duty. They shall not be taken in conjunction with each other or with the lunch period." General Order 101-5, Part I.A. ¶ 25. (2) "In the absence of orders to the contrary, lunch periods and coffee (rest) breaks may be taken at the discretion of the individual officer; provided that (1) the existing workload will not suffer by the officer's temporary absence, (2) the on-duty supervisor has been advised and authorizes the lunch or coffee (rest) break, and (3) the dispatcher is advised of the location where the officer is taking his or her break." Id. at ¶ 26. (3) "Officers on different patrol beats shall not take their lunch or coffee (rest) breaks together at the same location." Id. at ¶ 27. (4) Lunch periods may not be taken during the last full hour of the officer's tour of duty. (5) Police officers must stay in the defendant's corporate limits while on lunch break. (6) Police officers are expected to take their portable radios with them during their lunch break. Alternatively, officers must advise the dispatcher where they can be reached by telephone if they are not monitoring their radios. (7) Police officers are subject to call while on lunch breaks and are subject to the same response requirement. An officer is expected to respond to a crime committed in his presence, to injury accidents he observes and to all citizens who approach him during his lunch break. (8) Police officers may eat lunch at any location they choose. However, the officers are not to eat lunch at restaurants that serve alcoholic beverages. (9) Police officers are free to use their lunch periods for personal activities, but they cannot use their patrol vehicle for running personal errands. (10) As a practical matter, officers remain in uniform and have sidearms with them during lunch breaks. (11) The shift supervisor assigns patrolmen their lunch breaks at the beginning of each shift. If an officer is called into service during his scheduled lunch break, he is usually allowed to reschedule his lunch break later in the shift, if practical. If it is not practical to reschedule the lunch break, he will lose it. Sergeants and lieutenants do not have scheduled lunch breaks and may take their lunch break at any time; otherwise, the above-described rules apply to sergeants and lieutenants, as well as to patrolmen.

Police officers in Junction City were not subjected to frequent interruptions during their lunch periods as a result of being called to respond to emergencies. Police officers missed their entire lunch breaks on a sporadic basis.

Patrolmen's, lieutenants' and sergeants' pay varies according to the number of hours worked. Hourly wages are determined by rank and length of service with the department. Wage increases are based on the Chief of Police's recommendations, which are presented to the City Manager, who in turn presents them to the City Commission.

Defendant City established the following chain of command for the police department: (1) City Manager, (2) Chief of Police, (3) Assistant Chief of Police, (4) Division Captains, (5) Shift Supervisors, Lieutenants, Sergeants, and (6) Patrolmen. A lieutenant is the supervisor in charge on a shift. Except on day shift, a lieutenant is the highest ranking officer on duty. Only one lieutenant is on duty per shift. A lieutenant's primary duty is to supervise a specific unit of the police department for a specific period of time. A lieutenant is responsible for setting up the shift, assigning each patrolman a patrol area, assigning lunch periods, briefing the patrolmen about crimes committed during previous shifts and crimes under investigation, and supervising the patrolmen to make sure they work their assigned areas and fulfill their responsibilities. At all times, lieutenants supervise three or more patrolmen.

Lieutenants evaluate all patrolmen under their supervision. They review and approve all investigative reports filed by their patrolmen. Lieutenants are also involved with the discipline of patrolmen. They have the authority to give written reprimands and the authority to recommend suspensions or other disciplinary action. They do not have the authority to hire or terminate a patrol officer.

A lieutenant decides on a day-to-day basis how to utilize the patrolmen he supervises. He may assign an officer to work in plain clothes or to work specific kinds of crimes. Excluding the authority to allow overtime on a sporadic basis, a lieutenant has no authority to set the number of hours a subordinate works or to set wages. In addition to his supervisory duties, a lieutenant has patrol duties.

Essentially, a sergeant has the same duties and responsibilities as a lieutenant. A sergeant's primary duty is the supervision of patrolmen on a shift. When a lieutenant is not present (two days per week), the sergeant is the sole supervisor. When a lieutenant is present, a sergeant is either a station supervisor or a street supervisor. A station supervisor works the front desk, taking all incoming calls, handling citizens' complaints, supervising the dispatchers, and processing all administrative work. A street supervisor goes to a crime scene, decides what equipment is needed and directs the activities of the patrolmen.

Sergeants are responsible for setting up the duty roster. They have the authority to allow patrolmen to leave their shifts early, to call in the next shift early to assist in investigating a crime, and to redirect a patrolman's activities during his shift. Sergeants conduct monthly evaluations of all probationary patrolmen and quarterly evaluations of other patrolmen.

Lieutenants and sergeants earn over $250 per week. Lieutenants and sergeants are not paid overtime for working past the end of their shift to complete administrative duties.

The defendant City employs two kinds of investigators — labmen...