Voeltz v. Arctic Cat, Inc., 04-2810.

• Decision Date: 11 May 2005
• Docket Number: No. 04-2810.,04-2810.
• Citation: 406 F.3d 1047
• Parties: Marvin D.W. VOELTZ, Appellee, v. ARCTIC CAT, INC., a Minnesota Domestic Corporation, Appellant.
• Court: U.S. Court of Appeals — Eighth Circuit

406 F.3d 1047

Marvin D.W. VOELTZ, Appellee, v. ARCTIC CAT, INC., a Minnesota Domestic Corporation, Appellant.

No. 04-2810.

United States Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit.

Submitted: February 17, 2005.

Filed: May 11, 2005.

Stephen F. Simon, argued, Minneapolis, MN (Charles O. Lentz, on the brief), for appellant.

Richard D. Casey, argued, Sioux Falls, SD (Nicole Nachtigal Emerson, on the brief), for appellee.

Before MORRIS SHEPPARD ARNOLD, BOWMAN, and GRUENDER, Circuit Judges.

BOWMAN, Circuit Judge.

Arctic Cat, Inc., appeals from the judgment of the District Court entered in favor of Marvin Voeltz on his claim of disability discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). We vacate the actual and front-pay damage awards and remand.

Voeltz began working at Arctic Cat's Madison, South Dakota, manufacturing facility when it first opened in 1992. In 1997, Voeltz was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis (MS) and made his supervisors aware of his condition. After that, a number of accommodations were made to assist Voeltz in performing his duties as his disease progressed—his workspace and equipment were modified, he was given a cooling vest to wear in hot weather, he was allowed more frequent breaks, he was permitted to eat lunch in the conference room so he did not have to climbs stairs, and his job descriptions were modified.

Voeltz worked in the molding department at the Madison facility until those operations were discontinued in 1999. Voeltz then transferred to the welding department, his first choice of other available jobs at the facility, where he began work as a parts handler in March 2000. It was his responsibility to retrieve small parts from inventory and to deliver those parts to the welders. To do so, he used a forklift to reach the bins where the parts were stored and to transport the parts to the welding area. He also had the clerical responsibility of recording identification numbers and amounts as he took parts out of inventory.

Soon after Voeltz started his new job in welding, he was warned and reprimanded by his supervisors for forklift safety violations, carelessness, and posting incorrect numbers on inventory sheets. In August, Arctic Cat wrote to Voeltz's neurologist, Dr. Rossing, inquiring about transferring Voeltz to the department where fuel tanks and skis for snowmobiles were assembled. Rossing responded, stating that Voeltz should not be required to rotate through the four jobs in the assembly department, as other employees were expected to do. Rossing further said that Voeltz wanted to stay in welding as a parts handler. The physician thought that perhaps modifications could be made to the parts-handler duties so that Voeltz could do the job successfully. Rossing suggested that Arctic Cat contact an occupational therapist who specialized in workplace issues, even suggesting someone by name. Arctic Cat never contacted an occupational therapist expressly for the purpose of accommodating Voeltz so that he could adequately perform the parts-handler job, and in October 2000, Voeltz was transferred to assembly. He was not required to rotate through the various positions, but he nevertheless had some performance problems in this job as well. In December 2000, Voeltz and his coworkers in assembly were seasonally laid off.

In May 2001, Arctic Cat sent Voeltz a letter advising him that he would not be recalled because the company was "unable to find a position which meets [Voeltz's] work restrictions." Letter of May 18, 2001, from DeDe Backhaus to Marvin Voeltz. Voeltz was invited to contact the human resources assistant, or to have Rossing do so, if his restrictions had "improved significantly" or if the neurologist had "any additional suggestions." Id. Voeltz was placed on twelve-week leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act. After the May 18 letter, neither Voeltz nor Rossing contacted human resources at Arctic Cat to make additional suggestions for accommodation.

In March 2002, Voeltz filed suit against Arctic Cat alleging, inter alia, disability discrimination under the ADA. The case went to trial and the jury was instructed on the ADA claim on two theories: reasonable accommodation and disparate treatment. The jury found for Voeltz on the theory that Arctic Cat failed to provide reasonable accommodations and awarded him $71,000 in damages. On the disparate-treatment theory, the jury found that Voeltz's MS was a motivating factor in Arctic Cat's adverse employment decisions. But the jury also found that Arctic Cat would have made the same adverse employment decisions (transferring Voeltz and refusing to recall him) even if the company had not considered his disability. Because Arctic Cat prevailed on this "same decision" defense, compensatory or backpay damages could not be awarded on the verdict finding disparate treatment. See Pedigo v. P.A.M. Transp., Inc., 60 F.3d 1300, 1301 (8th Cir.1995).¹ The jury declined to award damages for intentional infliction of emotional distress or punitive damages, but the District Court ordered Arctic Cat to pay Voeltz $74,626 in front-pay damages and his reasonable attorney fees. Arctic Cat appeals the denial of its motion for judgment as a matter of law (JAML) and the court's decision to award front pay.

Arctic Cat first contends that it was entitled to JAML because of inconsistencies between the representations Voeltz made to secure disability benefits and the testimony he gave at trial regarding his ability to work. Arctic Cat's argument focuses on Voeltz's application for Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) benefits, which he made before Arctic Cat's May 18, 2001, letter to Voeltz. In the application, he represented to the government that he became unable to work because of his disabling condition on December 15, 2000, when he was laid off from the assembly position at Arctic Cat.² Arctic Cat argues that Voeltz's sworn statement of inability to work cannot be reconciled with his claim in this lawsuit that he could perform his job with accommodations. We review de novo the District Court's denial of Arctic Cat's motion for JAML, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to the jury's verdict. See Knutson v. Ag Processing, Inc., 394 F.3d 1047, 1050 (8th Cir.2005).

The Supreme Court has established that "pursuit, and receipt, of SSDI benefits does not automatically estop the recipient from pursuing an ADA claim." Cleveland v. Policy Mgmt. Sys. Corp., 526 U.S. 795, 797, 119 S.Ct. 1597, 143 L.Ed.2d 966 (1999). Moreover, there is no "special legal presumption" restricting a person who is receiving SSDI benefits from bringing an ADA claim. Id. at 805, 119 S.Ct. 1597. Still, in order to successfully maintain an ADA suit, such a plaintiff must "proffer a sufficient explanation" for the "apparent contradiction." Id. at 806, 119 S.Ct. 1597. Arctic Cat maintains that Voeltz failed to make the necessary explanation.

Voeltz testified that when he applied for social security benefits in April 2001, he did so at the suggestion of an Arctic Cat human resources employee and because he had heard that he might not be called back. He also said that he initially applied for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) benefits, thinking that he might be able to continue working only part-time and would need some additional income. He was told, however, that he would be better off with SSDI benefits. Although he indicated on the benefits application that he was unable to work, he testified at trial that he could have worked—with accommodation. That is, he was unable to work only because Arctic Cat had not accommodated his MS. Granted, he also agreed on cross-examination that he believed he could do the parts-handler job at Arctic Cat "just fine" without accommodation, ...