Singh v. City of New York

• Decision Date: 29 November 2005
• Docket Number: No. 02 Civ. 3458(PKC).,02 Civ. 3458(PKC).
• Citation: 418 F.Supp.2d 390
• Parties: Rajkumar SINGH; Thomas S. Matthews, Vivek N. Patil, Trushant Shah, Fredo Joseph and Faramaz Robeny, Plaintiffs, v. The CITY OF NEW YORK, Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York

418 F.Supp.2d 390

Rajkumar SINGH; Thomas S. Matthews, Vivek N. Patil, Trushant Shah, Fredo Joseph and Faramaz Robeny, Plaintiffs, v. The CITY OF NEW YORK, Defendant.

No. 02 Civ. 3458(PKC).

United States District Court, S.D. New York.

November 29, 2005.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Michael J. Andrews, Thomas S. Matthews, Michael J. Andrews P.C., New York City, for Plaintiff.

Michele A. Molfetta, Corporation Counsel, William S.J. Fraenkel, Michael D. Hess Corporation Counsel, New York City, for Defendant.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

CASTEL, District Judge.

Plaintiffs are six civilians employed by defendant City of New York as fire alarm inspectors, who allege, inter alia, that they have worked overtime without compensation, in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 ("FLSA"), as codified at 29 U.S.C. §§ 201-219. As part of their job, plaintiffs must carry briefcases containing various documents related to site inspections. Plaintiffs allege that carrying these briefcases extends and transforms their commutes from home to work for which they deserve compensation. In addition, plaintiffs allege that the time available to them during their scheduled work hours is insufficient to complete the paperwork associated with those inspections.

Plaintiffs commenced this action on May 6, 2002. The close of discovery was originally set by the Honorable Shira A Scheindlin for June 1, 2003. After the case was reassigned to me, I extended the discovery period to on or about March 5, 2004. I further extended discovery on certain matters to April 16, 2004, and subsequently, to May 28, 2004. Discovery has long been closed. Defendant has moved for summary judgment on all of plaintiffs' claims. Plaintiffs oppose defendant's motion and have offered their own motion for summary judgment on the FLSA claim. For the reasons outlined below, defendant's motion is granted in part and denied in part, and plaintiffs' motion is denied in its entirety.

Facts

For the purposes of these motions, I have accepted as true plaintiffs' version of the facts and such other facts offered by defendant that are not disputed by plaintiffs. Plaintiffs are currently employed as fire alarm inspectors in the Fire Alarm Inspection Unit ("FAIU") of the Fire Department of New York ("FDNY"), a municipal agency of the City of New York. (Pl. Resp. to Def. 56.1 ¶ 1) Plaintiff Rajkumar Singh has worked as a Supervisor of Electrical Installation in FAIU since August 1991. (Singh Dep. at 19, 32) Plaintiff Thomas Matthews began working in the same position in or around July 1991, and then was promoted to Supervising Inspector in July 2003. (Matthews Dep. at 29-30, 37-38) Plaintiff Vivek Patil began working as a Supervisor of Electrical Installation in August 1991, and plaintiff Trushant Shah began in the same position in February 1994. (Patil Dep. at 13; Shah Dep. at 15) Lastly, plaintiff Fredo Joseph began working as a Fire Protection Inspector in December 1991. (Joseph Dep. at 21)

For all of these plaintiffs, their work requires them to perform fire alarm inspections throughout the five boroughs of New York City. (Brown Dep. at 11-12) At the beginning of most workdays, plaintiffs travel to the first building to be inspected rather than reporting to FAIU headquarters or any other FDNY building. (Singh Dep. at 67; Pl. Dep. Ex. 6; Def. Ex. J) Once they arrive at the inspection site, plaintiffs must report their arrival at the site to FAIU headquarters via telephone. (Singh Dep. at 67; Pl. Dep. Ex. 6) Plaintiffs are required to bring with them several documents pertaining to the inspection site. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 24-25; Brown Dep. at 40-54, 74-75, 81-89, 100-102) After performing an average of five inspections each day, plaintiffs log out at the firehouse nearest to their last inspection site and then travel home with the documents. (Matthews Dep. at 138; Def. Ex. I)

The collective bargaining agreement between plaintiffs and defendant provides that plaintiffs are scheduled to work 35 hours per week. (Singh Dep. at 66-67; Def. Ex. N) The workday begins at 9:00 am and ends at 4:30 pm, with a half-hour break for lunch. (Singh Dep. at 66-67; Pl. Resp. to Def. 56.1 ¶¶ 8, 12) The workweek runs from Monday through Friday. (Pl. 56.1 ¶ 22)

On Fridays during their employment by defendant, plaintiffs have engaged in a different routine. Until approximately one year ago, plaintiffs would perform administrative work at FAIU headquarters on Friday mornings. (Pl. 56.1 ¶ 16; Singh Aff. ¶ 13; Matthews Dep. at 47-48) This work included completing assignments, preparing advanced time sheets, conferencing with supervisors and addressing personnel issues like vacation time. (Pl. 56.1 ¶ 17; Brown Dep. at 73-76). Plaintiffs claim that they only had two to three hours each day to perform these tasks and that the work could only be completed during that time. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 16-17) Plaintiffs further claim that they advised their management that such time was insufficient and that they were working at home. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 18-209) According to plaintiff Singh, defendant changed its policy approximately one year ago to allow plaintiffs and others similarly situated to complete such administrative work at any point during the week. (Pl. 56.1 ¶ 21; Singh Aff. ¶ 13) Plaintiffs do not appear to argue that this new policy prevents them from completing their administrative work during regular work hours.

Much of this lawsuit centers on the files that plaintiffs pick up on Friday mornings in order to perform inspections for the following week. Plaintiffs receive the files for approximately twenty inspections while at FAIU headquarters on Friday mornings. (Pl. 56.1 ¶ 24) The basis for plaintiffs' claims against defendant lies with their asserted obligation to transport and keep safe the files associated with site-specific inspections. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 30-32; Pl Exs. 6, 8) These files include documents describing the fire alarm history of the buildings to be inspected, various checklists and any available reports and correspondence. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 24-25; Pl. Resp. to Def. 56.1 ¶ 6; Brown Dep. at 40-54, 74-75, 81-89, 100-02) Plaintiffs are required to carry these files to and from work every day, and they maintain that the briefcase and files contained therein can weigh between fifteen and twenty pounds. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 26-27; Singh Dep. at 26, 57) According to plaintiffs, carrying this briefcase prolongs their commute time. (Pl. 56.1 ¶ 104; Singh Dep. at 91) Furthermore, the plaintiffs' obligation to "safeguard" the materials contained in these briefcases has allegedly prevented plaintiffs from attending social events because they must carry the briefcases with them everywhere. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 31, 107-10)

On June 16, 2000, plaintiff Singh wrote to then-FAIU manager Henry Gittlitz to inform him that he would no longer carry what he characterized as "important sensitive official papers / inspectional materials" to and from his home. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 5) Singh explained that his decision was "due to personal reasons and family circumstances" and "for reasons of [the] safety and security of those materials." (Pl.Dep. Ex. 5) In response, Gittlitz wrote a memorandum to Singh dated June 20, 2000, directing Singh to continue beginning and ending his work day in the field and to "safeguard all Fire Department property & materials assigned to you & /or in your possession." (Pl.Dep.Ex. 6) Gittlitz also threatened disciplinary action if Singh failed to comply with his directive. (Pl. Dep.Ex. 6)

Eventually, Singh wrote to the Chief of Fire Prevention and the Deputy Chief Inspector to voice his concerns. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 9-10) Other plaintiffs lodged similar complaints. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 10, 12) On Monday, April 2, 2001, plaintiff Singh went to his first inspection site without any inspection papers and then called FAIU headquarters to inform them of this fact. (Singh Dep. at 220-21; Singh Aff. ¶¶ 7, 10) Gittlitz wrote a memorandum to Singh informing him that his behavior amounted to a dereliction of duty and that any repetition would result in administrative charges against him. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 30)

Singh and other plaintiffs continued to voice their complaints. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 71-73) In June 2001, Singh wrote on his time sheets that he began and ended his work day at home. (Pl. 56.1 ¶ 78; Singh Aff. ¶ 9) Deputy Chief Inspector Barrington Brown wrote another memorandum to Singh directing him not to fill out his time sheets in this manner, and noting that "administrative & criminal charges" might be forthcoming. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 17)

On July 13, 2001, Singh was suspended for thirty days without pay. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 31) Although plaintiffs contend that no charges were filed against Singh nor was he provided a hearing, the FDNY provided Singh on August 15, 2001, with a memorandum entitled "Notice of Settlement Conference", which detailed five charges against him and set a conference date. (Pl. 56.1 ¶¶ 84-85; Pl. Dep. Ex. 33) On November 26, 2001, Singh attended this internal and informal mediation conference accompanied by a union representative to discuss the charges with Assistant Commissioner Stephen Gregory. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 38) After this conference, the FDNY refused to drop the disciplinary charges against Singh. (Pl.Dep.Ex. 38) In the memorandum explaining its decision, the FDNY informed Singh that he could either proceed with a formal hearing or utilize the grievance mechanism contained in the collective bargaining agreement. (Pl.Dep. Ex. 38) Plaintiff claims that he sought a hearing and did not seek to use the grievance mechanism through his union, but the record contains no evidence to support this assertion. (Singh Dep. at 137-38, 141)

Each of the six plaintiffs now seeks compensation for four hours for every inspection day worked while employed as an inspector by defendant. (Pl. Mem. of Law in Opp'n at 2) Plaintiff Singh alone also claims that that defendant engaged in unlawful retaliation and violated his free speech rights, as protected by the ...