Schurr v. Resorts Intern. Hotel, Inc.
| Citation | 16 F.Supp.2d 537 |
| Decision Date | 30 June 1998 |
| Docket Number | No. CIV. A. 96-3159.,CIV. A. 96-3159. |
| Parties | Karl C. SCHURR, Plaintiff, v. RESORTS INTERNATIONAL HOTEL, INC., New Jersey State Casino Control Commission, Bradford Smith, Chairman, New Jersey State Casino Control Commission, Defendants. |
| Court | United States District Courts. 3th Circuit. United States District Courts. 3th Circuit. District of New Jersey |
Stephen G. Console, Joseph J. Ayella, Law Offices of Stephen G. Console, Haddon Heights, NJ, for Plaintiff, Karl C. Schurr.
John M. Donnelly, E. Allan Mack, Scott J. Mitnick, Levine, Staller, Sklar, Chan, Brodsky & Donnelly, P.A., Atlantic City, NJ, for Defendant, Resorts International Hotel, Inc.
Peter Verniero, Attorney General, Andrew R. Sapolnick, Deputy Attorney General, State of New Jersey, Trenton, NJ, for Defendants, New Jersey State Casino Control Commission and Bradford Smith, Chairman, New Jersey State Casino Control Commission.
In this action, Plaintiff, Karl C. Schurr, challenges the constitutionality of New Jersey regulations which govern affirmative action in casino industry hiring. These regulations do not appear to have been challenged in any federal court before. Schurr also attacks the specific affirmative action policies which his employer instituted in order to comply with those regulations and which were applied to him. Schurr claims that the regulations are unconstitutional, and that his employer's policies, and their application to him, violate Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e et seq. For the reasons set forth below, I find that the connection between the injury Schurr claims to have sustained and the allegedly unconstitutional state regulations, N.J.A.C. 19:53-4.1 et seq., is far too attenuated to confer standing upon Schurr to assert his constitutional claims. I also find that Resorts' affirmative action policies, as instituted and applied to Schurr, did not violate Schurr's rights under Title VII. Accordingly, I will grant Defendants' motions for summary judgment and deny Schurr's cross-motion for summary judgment.
The following facts are not generally in dispute. Plaintiff, Karl C. Schurr ("Schurr"), is a resident of Oceanville, New Jersey, and is a white male. Complaint ¶¶ 1, 6 (dated July 8, 1996) (hereinafter Compl.); Joint Final Pretrial Order 3 (dated Oct. 3, 1997) (hereinafter Jt. Final). Beginning sometime in 1974, Schurr held a variety of full-time positions with Defendant, Resorts International Hotel, Inc. ("Resorts"), a New Jersey corporation with its principal place of business in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and previously with Resorts' predecessor, Chalfonte-Haddon Hall. Id.; Deposition of Karl C. Schurr 12-13 (dated May 29, 1997) (hereinafter Schurr Depo.). In 1978, Schurr took a position as a member of the lighting crew at one of Resorts' theaters. Id. Schurr continued working in lighting at Resorts until approximately June, 1986. At that point, he resigned his full-time position to go into the restaurant business. Thereafter, he worked only on occasion for Resorts. Id. at 16. Thus, after June, 1986, Schurr was a "casual" worker, in that he did not have a full-time position with Resorts, but worked as a member of the relevant union on an "as needed" basis. Id. at 16-18; Deposition of William Stevenson 10 (dated June 4, 1997) (hereinafter Stevenson Depo.); Jt. Final at 3.1
At some point in late 1993, Dave Maturi ("Maturi"), a full-time light and sound technician, was suspended by Resorts. See, e.g., Schurr Depo. at 22-23; Stevenson Depo. at 9. Schurr and Bill Stevenson, Resorts' Director of Show Operations and Stage Manager, see, e.g., Compl. at ¶ 19, both believed that if Maturi chose to arbitrate his grievance with Resorts prior to his termination, his position would not be available until after the arbitration was resolved. See Stevenson Depo. at 9-10; Schurr Depo. at 22-23, 32. After Maturi's suspension, Schurr began filling in for Maturi on a regular basis, although he remained a casual employee. See, e.g., Schurr Depo. at 23-24; Stevenson Depo. at 10, 85.
It is the circumstances surrounding how Maturi's full-time position and another position as an apprentice mechanic were filled by Resorts that forms the basis of Schurr's claims. Before I turn to those circumstances, however, I must describe the affirmative action efforts required by New Jersey law and under the regulations promulgated by Defendant, New Jersey State Casino Control Commission (the "Commission"), of which Defendant, Bradford Smith ("Smith"), is the chairman.
As part of the Casino Control Act, N.J.S.A. 5:12-1 et seq. (the "Act"), N.J.S.A. 5:12-134 requires, in relevant part, that applicants for licenses under the Act:
formulate for [C]ommission approval and abide by an affirmative-action program of equal opportunity whereby the applicant guarantees to provide equal employment opportunity to ... members of minority groups qualified for licensure in all employment categories ... in accordance with the [New Jersey Law Against Discrimination, N.J.S.A. 10:5-1 et seq.]
Under this authority, the Commission has promulgated regulations concerning the equal employment opportunity and affirmative action obligations of various sectors of the casino industry, including the work force of casino licensees, contractors involved in the construction of casinos, and enterprises which provide goods and services within the casino industry. See N.J.A.C. 19:53-1.1(b); N.J.S.A. 5:12-12 (defining "casino service industry"); see generally In re Repeal of N.J.A.C. 19:53, 282 N.J. Super. 217, 220-21, 226-27, 659 A.2d 941 (App. Div. 1995) ().
At issue in this action are the regulations with respect to the work force of casino licensees, N.J.A.C. 19:53-4.1 to -4.6. Section 4.1 sets forth the requirement that casino licensees and applicants provide "equal employment opportunity to all prospective and actual employees at all levels of the operations work force." N.J.A.C. 19:53-4.1(a). Pursuant to this obligation, casino licensees and applicants must:
1. Post notices available to employees and applicants for employment of the equal employment opportunity obligations of the casino licensee or applicant;
2. Include a statement in all postings, advertisements or other solicitations for employment that it is an equal opportunity employer;
3. Post all employment openings for response by qualified in-house employees and, when appropriate, advertise such openings in newspapers of general circulation and other media which reach a cross-section of the population in the area from which the work force will be drawn;
4. Send to each labor union or representative of workers with which it has a collective bargaining agreement, a notice of the obligations of the casino licensee or applicant under the Act and this chapter;
5. Evaluate any criteria, tests, interview procedures and other requirements for employment, promotion or transfer of employees to assure that they are not discriminatory in their impact or that no less discriminatory methods of evaluation or prediction of job performance are feasible;
6. Provide to the Commission, upon request, a description of all criteria, tests, interview procedures or other procedures used to determine whether to employ an applicant for employment or to transfer, upgrade or promote an existing employee.
N.J.A.C. 19:53-4.1(b). Casino licensees and applicants also must:
[i]n the event that any criteria, test, interview procedure or other employment procedure used by a casino licensee or applicant is shown to have a discriminatory impact, the casino licensee or applicant shall be required to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Commission that no less discriminatory method of evaluation or prediction of job performance is feasible. In such case, the casino licensee or applicant shall justify the requirements imposed and shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Commission that any criteria, tests, interview procedures or other procedures used are truly predictive of job performance. The casino licensee or applicant shall discontinue the use of any criteria, tests, interview procedures or other employment procedures which have a discriminatory impact and which cannot be validated as truly predictive of job performance to the satisfaction of the Commission. In attempting to establish the validity of the criterion, test, interview procedure or other employment procedure, the casino licensee or applicant shall be guided by the rules of the New Jersey Division on Civil Rights and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Section 4.3 sets forth the affirmative action obligations of casino licensees and applicants. It provides:
(a) Each casino licensee and applicant shall be required to undertake affirmative measures to ensure that women, minorities2 and persons with disabilities are recruited and employed at all levels of the operations work force and treated during employment without regard to their gender, minority status or disability. Such affirmative efforts shall, without limitation, address all employment practices including:
1. Employment, promotion, demotion or transfer;
2. Recruitment, recruitment advertising or posting;
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Rudolph v. Adamar of New Jersey, Inc., CIV. A. 00-190.
...to retain independent counsel, the New Jersey Attorney General has on occasion represented the CCC. See, e.g., Schurr v. Resorts Int'l Hotel, 16 F.Supp.2d 537 (D.N.J.1998), rev'd, 196 F.3d 486 (3d Cir.1999). Accordingly, I conclude that the fact that the CCC has the authority to retain inde......
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Rudolph v. Adamar of New Jersey, Inc., Civil Action No. 00-190 (D. N.J. 7/31/2001), Civil Action No. 00-190
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Brown v. Vitelcom, Inc., Civ. No. 19995–142.
...or retaliation under Title VII, summary judgment on Brown's section 1981 claim is also inappropriate. See Schurr v. Resorts Intern. Hotel, Inc., 16 F.Supp.2d 537, 556 (D.N.J.1998).C. Are the Defendants Entitled to Summary Judgment on Other Grounds? The defendants also seek whole or partial ......
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