Pascoe v. Mentor Graphics Corp., No. Civ. 00-874-ST.
| Decision Date | 11 December 2001 |
| Docket Number | No. Civ. 00-874-ST. |
| Citation | 199 F.Supp.2d 1034 |
| Parties | William PASCOE, Sr., Plaintiff, v. MENTOR GRAPHICS CORPORATION, Defendant. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Oregon |
Thomas M. Steenson, Zan E. Tewksbury, Steenson, Schumann, Tewksbury & Rose, P.C., Portland, Oregon, for plaintiff.
John F. Neupert, Melissa Lehane Rawlinson, Miller Nash, LLP, Portland, Oregon, for defendant.
The Honorable Janice M. Stewart, United States Magistrate Judge, filed Findings and Recommendation on November 2, 2001. The matter is before this court. See 28 U.S.C. § 636(b)(1)(B) and Fed. R.Civ.P. 72(b). No objections have been timely filed. This relieves me of my obligation to give the factual findings de novo review. Lorin Corp. v. Goto & Co., Ltd., 700 F.2d 1202, 1206 (8th Cir.1983); See also Britt v. Simi Valley Unified School Dist., 708 F.2d 452, 454 (9th Cir.1983). Having reviewed the legal principles de novo, I find no error.
Accordingly, I ADOPT Magistrate Judge Stewart's Findings and Recommendation (# 80).
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Mentor Graphic's motion for partial summary judgment (# 25) is denied. Pascoe's oral motion for partial summary judgment as to the third claim for relief is granted for penalties both for violating ORS 652.140 and for violating either FLSA minimum wage provision or ORS 653.055, with the second penalty limited to whatever amount is greater under the FLSA or ORS 652.150 ().
Plaintiff, William Pascoe, Sr. ("Pascoe"), a former employee of defendant, Mentor Graphics Corporation ("Mentor Graphics"), filed this action on June 23, 2000, and filed his First Amended Complaint ("Complaint") on July 28, 2000. Pascoe alleges claims against Mentor Graphics for: (1) age discrimination and retaliation in violation of both the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 USC § 621, et seq. ("ADEA") and its state counterpart, ORS Chapter 659 (First and Second Claims for Relief); (2) wrongful discharge (Third Claim for Relief); and (3) failure to pay minimum wages in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, 29 USC § 201, et seq. ("FLSA") and state law, ORS Chapter 653, or to pay wages in a timely fashion under state law, ORS Chapter 653 (Fourth Claim for Relief).
This Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 USC § 1331 and supplemental jurisdiction pursuant to 28 USC § 1367. Mentor Graphics has filed a Motion for Partial Summary Judgment (docket # 25), seeking summary judgment against Pascoe's first three claims, and against his fourth claim to the extent it seeks recovery of more than one penalty under federal or state law. For the reasons stated below, the motion should be denied and Pascoe's oral motion for summary judgment on the wage claim penalties should be granted.
FRCP 56(c) authorizes summary judgment if no genuine issue exists regarding any material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. The moving party must show an absence of an issue of material fact. Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). Once the moving party shows the absence of an issue of material fact, the non-moving party must go beyond the pleadings and designate specific facts showing a genuine issue for trial. Id at 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548. A scintilla of evidence, or evidence that is merely colorable or not significantly probative, does not present a genuine issue of material fact. United Steelworkers of Am. v. Phelps Dodge Corp., 865 F.2d 1539, 1542 (9th Cir.), cert denied, 493 U.S. 809, 110 S.Ct. 51, 107 L.Ed.2d 20 (1989).
The substantive law governing a claim or defense determines whether a fact is material. T.W. Elec. Serv., Inc. v. Pacific Elec. Contractors Ass'n, 809 F.2d 626, 630 (9th Cir.1987). The court must view the inferences drawn from the facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Thus, reasonable doubts about the existence of a factual issue should be resolved against the moving party. Id at 630-31. However, when the non-moving party's claims are factually implausible, that party must come forward with more persuasive evidence than would otherwise be required. California Architectural Bldg. Prods., Inc. v. Franciscan Ceramics Inc., 818 F.2d 1466, 1468 (9th Cir.1987), cert denied, 484 U.S. 1006, 108 S.Ct. 698, 699, 98 L.Ed.2d 650 (1988), citing Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). The Ninth Circuit has stated, "No longer can it be argued that any disagreement about a material issue of fact precludes the use of summary judgment." Id.
Because all material facts must be viewed in the light most favorable to the non-movant, this court will view the evidence in the light most favorable to Pascoe. A review of the parties' submissions, including affidavits, declarations, and deposition excerpts,1 reveals the following facts.
Pascoe was first employed by Mentor Graphics in November 1990 on a contract basis as a full-time technical writer. Pascoe Dec, ¶ 5. In 1991, he became a regular, full-time Technical Writer/Course Developer III (Senior Technical Writer). Plaintiff's Ex 103. He was promoted to the position of Technical Marketing Engineer II in January 1994 to the position of Program Manager in April 1998. Pascoe Dec, ¶ 5; Plaintiff's Ex 107. In April 1999, he was promoted to the position of Product Marketing Manager with the AMS Group. Plaintiff's Ex 113. The AMS Group is within the DSM division of Mentor Graphics. Chern Dec, ¶ 1. In June 2000, Mentor Graphics terminated his employment. At that time, he was 62 years old. Pascoe Depo, pp. 8-9.
On April 15, 1999, Karl Lange ("Lange") was hired by Mentor Graphics as a Marketing Director and became Pascoe's fifth supervisor. At the time, Lange was 45 and Pascoe was 61 years old. Plaintiff's Ex 129; Pascoe Dec, ¶ 11.
Lange treated Pascoe differently than his younger co-workers because of his age by: (1) singling him out for criticism for minor errors, such as being a few minutes late for a meeting because Pascoe was on the phone with a customer, while younger employees who were 20-30 minutes late for the same meeting were not reprimanded; (2) publicly criticizing him in Grenoble, France, for matters that Lange knew were beyond his control; (3) threatening him with what would have been an undeserved poor performance review for 1999; (4) chastising him for not resolving a problem that had never been assigned to him for resolution, which, once assigned to him, he was able to resolve in about 30 minutes; (5) chastising him for being inaccessible to those in engineering, when he was accessible; (6) not giving him the authority necessary to handle a product's delivery and then unfairly criticizing him when he could not "make it happen;" and (7) denying him the opportunity to travel as much as was necessary to fulfill his duties. Pascoe Dec, ¶ 12.
In comparison, Gary Pratt ("Pratt"), whom Lange also supervised, was promoted by Lange to Technical Marketing Manager, got along with Lange, and never received any criticism by Lange. Pratt Depo (Plaintiff's Ex 146), pp. 3-7, 15. Pratt was 40 years old at the time Lange started working for Mentor Graphics. Plaintiff's Ex 129.
Mentor Graphics has written personnel policies which prohibit any difference in treatment, i.e., discrimination or harassment, on the basis of age. Plaintiff's Exs 133, 134. One of those policies states Human Resources ("HR") should investigate any discrimination or harassment complaint when made directly to HR. Id. Mentor Graphics' Employee Relations Director, Ryan Kenney ("Kenney"), along with certain other Mentor Graphics' employees, has responsibility for investigating or directing the investigation of age discrimination complaints. Kenney Depo, p. 30.
Mentor Graphics has another written personnel policy to handle internal complaints of discrimination or harassment to HR. Plaintiff's Ex 135. An HR Consultant starts a confidential and expedited factfinding process which includes obtaining a statement of the complaint, gathering data and evaluating the situation. The investigation, the results, and any action taken must be documented and communicated to the complainant. Id; Kenney Depo, pp. 38-42.
Mentor Graphics also has a written personnel policy outlining procedures for providing annual written Performance Reviews for its employees. The policy sets forth the following steps:
a. Manager establishes performance criteria for employee.
b. Manager generally communicates performance criteria to employee at the beginning of a review period.
c. Manager obtains employee's input on accomplishments and performance.
d. Manager clarifies input with employee, particularly when there are differences.
e. Manager collects feedback on employee performance and achievements from peers, direct reports, matrix managers, etc., as given by employee and others chosen by manager.
f. Manager prepares "draft" Performance Review, prepares Ranking Summary Worksheet, and participates in Ranking Session.
g. Manager follows-up and clarifies any new information obtained on employee during the ranking session.
h. Manager finalizes the Performance Review.
i. Manager reviews the completed Performance Review with Second Level Manager and Matrix Manager, where appropriate, and obtains necessary signatures.
i. Manager delivers Performance Review to employee and discusses it with him.
j. If employee rates "Does Not Meet Minimum Expectations" or "Needs Improved Consistency" as one option, a Performance Improvement Plan may be developed, with Human Resources Center ("HR"), and delivered to the employee at the...
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