Ramirez v. Riverbay Corp.
| Decision Date | 01 August 2014 |
| Docket Number | No. 13 Civ. 2367JGK.,13 Civ. 2367JGK. |
| Citation | 35 F.Supp.3d 513 |
| Parties | Rosaly RAMIREZ, et al., Plaintiffs, v. RIVERBAY CORP., et al., Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York |
Brett Reed Gallaway, Lee Scott Shalov, Wade Christopher Wilkinson, McLaughlin and Stern, LLP, New York, NY, Louis Ginsberg, Matthew Eric Cohen, Law Firm of Louis Ginsberg, P.C., Roslyn, NY, for Plaintiffs.
Christopher A. Smith, Jonathan Michael Bardavid, Scott Paul Trivella, Trivella & Forte, White Plains, NY, for Defendants.
The plaintiffs bring this action under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”), 29 U.S.C. § 201 et seq., and the New York Labor Law (“NYLL”), §§ 190 et seq. & 650 et seq., claiming various violations of their right to receive a minimum wage and overtime compensation. The plaintiffs allege, among other things, that they were unlawfully provided compensatory time off in lieu of overtime wages for hours worked in excess of forty hours per week (the “comp time claims”), and that the defendants unlawfully failed to incorporate a nighttime wage differential in the plaintiffs' base pay when calculating the plaintiffs' overtime wages (the “nighttime differential claims”). Presently before the Court are the parties' cross-motions for summary judgment on the plaintiffs' comp time and nighttime differential claims. Also before the Court is the defendants' motion to dismiss the comp time and nighttime differential claims pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure on the ground that these claims are preempted under Section 301 of the Labor–Management Relations Act (“LMRA”), 29 U.S.C. § 185(a). Finally, Defendant Peter Merola has moved to dismiss all claims against him pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6) on the ground that the plaintiffs have failed to allege that he is individually liable under the FLSA and the NYLL. For the reasons that follow, the plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment is granted in part and denied in part; the defendants' cross-motion for summary judgment is denied; the defendants' motion to dismiss on preemption grounds is denied; and Defendant Merola's motion to dismiss is denied.
The standard for granting summary judgment is well established. “The Court shall grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(a) ; see also Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322–23, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986) ; Gallo v. Prudential Residential Servs., LP, 22 F.3d 1219, 1223 (2d Cir.1994). Gallo, 22 F.3d at 1224. The moving party bears the initial burden of “informing the district court of the basis for its motion” and identifying the matter that “it believes demonstrate[s] the absence of a genuine issue of material fact.” Celotex, 477 U.S. at 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548. The substantive law governing the case will identify those facts which are material and “[o]nly disputes over facts that might affect the outcome of the suit under the governing law will properly preclude the entry of summary judgment.”Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).
In determining whether summary judgment is appropriate, a court must resolve all ambiguities and draw all reasonable inferences against the moving party. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986) (citing United States v. Diebold, Inc., 369 U.S. 654, 655, 82 S.Ct. 993, 8 L.Ed.2d 176 (1962) ). Summary judgment is improper if there is any evidence in the record from any source from which a reasonable inference could be drawn in favor of the non-moving party. See Chambers v. TRM Copy Ctrs. Corp., 43 F.3d 29, 37 (2d Cir.1994). If the moving party meets its burden, the non-moving party must produce evidence in the record and “may not rely simply on conclusory statements or on contentions that the affidavits supporting the motion are not credible....” Ying Jing Gan v. City of New York, 996 F.2d 522, 532 (2d Cir.1993) (citations omitted); see also Scotto v. Almenas, 143 F.3d 105, 114–15 (2d Cir.1998) (collecting cases); Spencer v. Ellsworth, No. 09cv3773, 2011 WL 1775963, at *1 . If there are cross-motions for summary judgment, the Court must assess each of the motions and determine whether either party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Admiral Indem. Co. v. Travelers Cas. & Sur. Co. of America, 881 F.Supp.2d 570, 574 (S.D.N.Y.2012).
In deciding a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6), the allegations in the complaint are accepted as true, and all reasonable inferences must be drawn in the plaintiffs' favor. McCarthy v. Dun & Bradstreet Corp., 482 F.3d 184, 191 (2d Cir.2007). The Court's function on a motion to dismiss is “not to weigh the evidence that might be presented at a trial but merely to determine whether the complaint itself is legally sufficient.” Goldman v. Belden, 754 F.2d 1059, 1067 (2d Cir.1985). The Court should not dismiss the complaint if the plaintiffs have stated “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff[s] plead[ ] factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant liable for the misconduct alleged.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). While the Court should construe the factual allegations in the light most favorable to the plaintiffs, “the tenet that a court must accept as true all of the allegations contained in the complaint is inapplicable to legal conclusions.” Id.
When presented with a motion to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6), the Court may consider documents that are referenced in the complaint, documents that the plaintiffs relied on in bringing suit and that are either in the plaintiffs' possession or that the plaintiffs knew of when bringing suit, or matters of which judicial notice may be taken. See Chambers v. Time Warner, Inc., 282 F.3d 147, 153 (2d Cir.2002) ; see also Chen v. Major League Baseball, 6 F.Supp.3d 449, 451–52, 2014 WL 1230006, at *1 (S.D.N.Y.2014).
The following facts are undisputed unless otherwise noted.
The named plaintiffs in this action are current and former hourly employees of RiverBay. (Am. Compl. ¶¶ 8–12.) They allege that the defendants have engaged in various policies and practices of failing to pay minimum wage and overtime compensation in violation of their rights under the FLSA and the NYLL. (Am. Compl. ¶ 3.)
Defendant RiverBay manages Co–Op City, which is the largest cooperative housing development in the world. (Am. Compl. ¶ 14.) Defendant Marion Scott is the exclusive property manager for all of RiverBay's residential and commercial properties. (Am. Compl. ¶ 15.) Individual Defendants Vernon Cooper and Peter Merola are RiverBay's General Manager and Director of Finance, respectively. (Am. Compl. ¶¶ 17–18.)
Plaintiff Rosaly Ramirez was employed by RiverBay in various positions, including sergeant, officer, detective, and secretary, from April 2001 to February 2013. (Decl. of Rosaly Ramirez in Supp. of Mot. for Partial Summ. J. (“Ramirez Decl.”) ¶ 2.) Plaintiff Katherine Bell has been employed by RiverBay as a customer service representative since January 1996. (Decl. of Katherine Bell in Supp. of Mot. for Partial Summ. J. (“Bell Decl.”) ¶ 2.) Plaintiff Linda Williams has been employed by RiverBay as a dispatcher in the Public Safety Office and as a full-time customer service representative with the Cooperator Service Office since May 14, 2001. (Decl. of Linda Williams in Supp. of Mot. for Partial Summ. J. (“Williams Decl.”) ¶ 2.) Plaintiff Lorna Thomas has been employed by RiverBay as a bookkeeper in the Finance Department, and then as a sales associate in the Residential Sales Department, from 1984 to the present. (Decl. of Lorna Thomas in Supp. of Mot. for Partial Summ. J. (“Thomas Decl.”) ¶ 2.) Finally, Plaintiff Jonathan Frias was employed by RiverBay as a peace officer from July 2006 to August 2013. (Aff. of Louis Ginsberg (“Ginsberg Aff.”), Ex. O (“Frias Dep.”) at 11.)
Frias and Ramirez were members of the Police Benevolent Association (“PBA”) during their employment at RiverBay. (Frias Dep. at 12; Ramirez Decl. ¶ 3.) Bell, Thomas, and Williams were members of the Office and Professional Employees International Union Local 153 (“Local 153”). (Bell Decl. ¶ 3; Thomas Decl. ¶ 3; Williams Decl. ¶ 3.) The terms and conditions of the employment of RiverBay employees in the Local 153 and the PBA are governed by collective bargaining agreements (“CBAs”) between these unions and RiverBay.
In this action, the named plaintiffs allege various violations of their rights to minimum wage and overtime compensation under the FLSA and the NYLL.
First, Frias, Ramirez, and Thomas claim that they were unlawfully provided overtime compensation in the form of compensatory time off (“comp time”) in lieu of cash for time worked in excess of forty hours per week. (Am. Compl. ¶¶ 8, 10, 12, 30; see also Frias Dep. at 22; Ramirez Decl. ¶ 6; Thomas Decl. ¶ 6.)
Second, all five named plaintiffs claim that they earned premium “nighttime differential” pay for work performed during night shifts, and that the defendants improperly failed to incorporate this nighttime differential pay into their regular rates of pay when calculating their overtime wages. (Am. Compl. ¶¶ 8, 9, 12; ...
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