Stokes v. Norfolk Southern Ry. Co.
| Decision Date | 17 May 2000 |
| Docket Number | No. 1:99CV0518RM.,1:99CV0518RM. |
| Citation | 99 F.Supp.2d 966 |
| Parties | Andrew STOKES, Plaintiff, v. NORFOLK SOUTHERN RAILWAY COMPANY, Norfolk Southern Corporation, and Robert Williamson, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Northern District of Indiana |
Christopher C. Myers, Christopher Myers and Associates, Fort Wayne, Donald M. Flack, Robert W. Schmeider, Pratt and Tobin, East Alton, IL, for Andrew Stokes, plaintiffs.
Timothy E Kapshandy, James S Whitehead, Sidley and Austin, Chicago, IL, for Norfolk and Southern Railway Company, a Virginia Corporation, Norfolk Southern Corp, a Virginia Corporation, Robert Williamson, Individually and in his capacity as Track Supervisor for Norfolk Southern Railway Company, defendants.
Andrew Stokes filed a three-count complaint against his employer, Norfolk Southern Railway Company, its parent corporation Norfolk Southern Corporation, and one of his supervisors, Robert Williamson. Mr. Stokes claims he was discriminated against because of his race when his employer laid him off on February 14, 1997, and then refused his repeated requests to "bump" into foreman positions up to and including January 4, 1998. The defendants filed a motion to dismiss, or in the alternative, a motion for judgment on the pleadings pursuant to Rules 12(b)(1) and (6), and Rule 12(c) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, contending that Mr. Stokes's civil rights claims pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq. and 42 U.S.C. § 1981 are preempted by the Railway Labor Act, 45 U.S.C. § 151 et seq.; that Mr. Stokes failed to meet the administrative prerequisites for filing a Title VII claim; that Mr. Stokes's § 1981 claim should be dismissed because he didn't comply with the applicable statute of limitations or because the claim is legally inadequate; and that his state law claim for intentional infliction of emotional distress is preempted by the Railway Labor Act or is inadequate as a matter of law.
Mr. Stokes moved to amend his complaint at the same time he responded to the dismissal motion. This motion created a procedural knot that must be loosened before the court proceeds. Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 15(a), Mr. Stokes had the right to amend his complaint "once as a matter of course" before a responsive pleading was filed, and since a dismissal motion is not a responsive pleading, see Fed.R.Civ.P. 7(a), he had that right when he filed his first amended complaint. The amended complaint superseded the original complaint, to which the dismissal motion had been directed, making the dismissal motion moot—a point not easily remembered in light of the contemporaneous filing of a response to the dismissal motion.
Norfolk Southern's reaction deepened the confusion. Norfolk Southern filed a reply in support of its dismissal motion (a motion already moot) and, perhaps since Mr. Stokes sought the court's permission to do what the rules entitled him to do, Norfolk Southern also opposed the filing of the amended complaint, arguing that the amendment would be futile in light of the arguments raised in the dismissal motion. Futility is, of course, a pertinent consideration when evaluating whether justice requires allowing a requested amendment to a pleading, General Electric Capital Corp. v. Lease Resolution Corp., 128 F.3d 1074 (7th Cir.1997), but it is entirely beside the point when amendment is a matter of right rather than dependent on an exercise of judicial discretion.
The court made its own contribution to the tangle by allowing matters to proceed through reply and to rest for several weeks thereafter without pointing these things out. Now, a quarter of the time allowed for discovery has passed, as has the time within which amendments to the pleadings were to be allowed. Accordingly, the court takes the following course with intent to unravel: a comparison of the two complaints (original and amended) indicates some clarification, but nothing that was not addressed in the briefing on the motion to dismiss the original complaint. The court does not ordinarily infer such things, but under these odd circumstances, the court will assume that Norfolk Southern directs the motion to dismiss the original complaint at the amended complaint, as well. Rather than make the parties adopt and renew their arguments, which would appear to do nothing but delay ruling, the court deems the amended complaint filed March 7, 2000, with the dismissal motion immediately renewed with respect to the amended complaint; the court grants the motion to amend (which it has no power to deny) and denies the objection to that motion as moot.
The procedural knot having been undone as best the court can, the court turns to the issues presented in the dismissal motion. The amended complaint drops count III, so the court does not address the arguments aimed solely at the superseded count.
Because this case is before the court on a motion to dismiss, the court assumes the truth of Mr. Stokes's allegations and bases its recital of the facts on those contained in his complaint. See Antonelli v. Sheahan, 81 F.3d 1422, 1427 (7th Cir.1996).
Andrew Stokes worked for Norfolk Southern from May 20, 1977. Contrary to its usual and customary practice of laying off its employees according to seniority, Norfolk Southern laid off Mr. Stokes from his machine operator position on February 14, 1997, while allowing a less senior white employee to retain his position as machine operator. After his layoff, Mr. Stokes notified his supervisor defendant Robert Williamson (who is said to have told other employees that "That nigger's [Mr. Stokes] not smart enough to be a surfacing gang foreman" and "I don't know if that dumb a—nigger is smart enough to swing a hammer") that he wanted to exercise his "bumping rights" to a position as foreman of a surfacing gang. Again contrary to its usual and customary practice, Norfolk Southern refused his requested "bump" and allowed a white employee with less seniority to retain that position.
Norfolk Southern continued to refuse Mr. Stokes's repeated requests to "bump" into foreman positions until January 4, 1998, when the position of extra gang foreman became available. Although Norfolk Southern usually advertises such an open position and usually allows the employee with the most seniority to fill the opening, Norfolk Southern did not advertise the position or make it available based on seniority. Mr. Stokes had been furloughed as an extra gang foreman, was qualified to perform the job based on his seniority, and would have been eligible for the job had it been advertised. The job was awarded to a white employee.
Norfolk Southern initially seeks to dismiss Mr. Stokes's Title VII and § 1981 claims on the grounds that they are precluded1 by the Railway Labor Act and must be resolved in arbitration because (1) the collective bargaining agreement with the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employees is the only source of Mr. Stokes's seniority rights and (2) resolution of his claims depends on an interpretation of the CBA. Mr. Stokes challenges Norfolk Southern's interpretation and application of the law and maintains the RLA doesn't preempt claims for unlawful discrimination. He argues that because his right to be free from unlawful discrimination derives from statute, it can't be classified as either a "minor" or a "major" dispute; instead, the right to work in a discrimination-free workplace is an independent right that is protected separately and distinctly from the contractual rights of the CBA. Both parties rely on Hawaiian Airlines, Inc. v. Norris, 512 U.S. 246, 114 S.Ct. 2239, 129 L.Ed.2d 203 (1994). The court believes Hawaiian Airlines supports Mr. Stokes's claims.
Rule 12(b)(1) provides for dismissal of claims over which the federal court lacks subject matter jurisdiction. Jurisdiction is the "power to decide" and must be conferred upon the federal court. In re Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific R.R. Co., 794 F.2d 1182, 1188 (7th Cir.1986). In reviewing a 12(b)(1) motion to dismiss, the court may properly look beyond the jurisdictional allegations of the complaint to determine whether subject matter jurisdiction exists. See United Transp. Union v. Gateway Western Ry. Co., 78 F.3d 1208, 1210 (7th Cir.1996). The plaintiff bears the burden of establishing that the jurisdictional requirements have been met and when a party moves for dismissal pursuant to Rule 12(b)(1), the non-moving party must support its allegations with competent proof of jurisdictional facts. See Commodity Trend Service, Inc. v. Commodity Futures Trading Comm'n, 149 F.3d 679, 685 (7th Cir.1998).
The RLA provides a "mandatory arbitral mechanism" for the resolving "minor disputes"—those that "involve controversies over the meaning of an existing collective bargaining agreement." Monroe v. Missouri Pacific Railroad Co., 115 F.3d 514, 516 (7th Cir.1997) (); see also 45 U.S.C. § 153 First (I) (). The RLA doesn't preclude claims under a separate federal remedial statute when the claimant is enforcing substantive rights that are "independent of" the...
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