Williams v. Astra Usa, Inc., Civil Action No. 98-40190-NMG.

• Citation: 68 F.Supp.2d 29
• Decision Date: 21 September 1999
• Docket Number: Civil Action No. 98-40190-NMG.
• Parties: Mark WILLIAMS, Plaintiff, v. ASTRA USA, INC., Defendant.
• Court: U.S. District Court — District of Massachusetts

Page 29

68 F.Supp.2d 29

Mark WILLIAMS, Plaintiff, v. ASTRA USA, INC., Defendant.

Civil Action No. 98-40190-NMG.

United States District Court, D. Massachusetts.

September 21, 1999.

COPYRIGHT MATERIAL OMITTED

Philip M. Giordano, James F. Champa, Giordano & Champa, P.A., Boston, MA, for plaintiff.

Richard L. Alfred, Hill & Barlow, Boston, MA, for defendant.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

GORTON, District Judge.

On September 9, 1998, plaintiff Mark Williams ("Williams") brought this action against his former employer, defendant Astra USA, Inc. ("Astra"), alleging a hostile work environment claim under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, (Count I), constructive discharge/wrongful termination (Count II), breach of contract/estoppel (Count III), breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing (Count IV), intentional infliction of emotional distress (Count V), and negligent infliction of emotional distress (Count VI).

Pending before this Court are 1) a Motion by Astra to dismiss all counts of Williams' complaint or, in the alternative, to strike certain allegations from Williams' complaint (Docket No. 4), and 2) a Motion by Williams for Leave to Amend the Complaint (Docket No. 6).

I. Factual Allegations

In determining a motion for judgment on the pleadings, this Court must accept all of the non-movant's factual averments as true and draw all reasonable inferences in his favor. French v. Pan Am Express, Inc., 869 F.2d 1 (1st Cir.1989) (citations omitted). Accordingly, the following facts are summarized from the allegations in the complaint and are taken as true for purposes of the present motion. See Kiely v. Raytheon Company, 105 F.3d 734, 735 (1st Cir.1997).

Williams is an adult, African-American male residing in the State of Michigan. Astra is a corporation, organized under the laws of the state of New York, with its principal place of business in Massachusetts.

In or about October 1994, Williams participated in Astra's six-week training program for sales representatives. During the training program, a black co-worker, Claude Shelton ("Shelton"), came to the room where Williams was residing and knocked on Williams' door. A white co-worker, assigned as Williams' roommate, answered the door and told Shelton that what he had just done was "nigger-knocking". Williams demanded his roommate stop uttering such racial slurs.

In or about December, 1994, despite his expressed preference to be assigned to the Pittsburgh sales territory, Astra designated Williams as its sales representative in Saginaw, Michigan. According to Williams, Saginaw demographically has few minority residents and is known historically as a region with long-standing hostility and prejudice against African-Americans. Upon publication of the territory assignments, Williams' peers in the Astra training program commented that he would need to get a "coon-skinned" cap to be able to work in Saginaw. The use of the term "coon-skinned" was offensive to Williams.

According to Williams, he was subjected to hostile and racially discriminatory treatment by, inter alia, Astra's current and potential customers, including but not limited to physicians. For instance, in or about 1995, a doctor's wife warned Williams that, because African-Americans were not welcome in Hemlock, Michigan, he should not stop in Hemlock for any reason as his safety would most likely be endangered. She recounted to Williams that certain of her friends expressed that they "hated niggers".

Also, in or about 1995, Williams had a discussion with a doctor, who was an Astra customer, in Carsonville, Michigan and informed Williams to be wary of the local residents who were extremely prejudiced against African-Americans. He also warned Williams not to stop in the area at night as it was not safe for minorities.

Also at that same doctor's office, Williams encountered a patient in the waiting area who stated (in a voice loud enough for Williams to hear) that he wasn't aware that the doctor "allowed niggers" into the office. Furthermore, in or about 1995, Williams was warned by another Astra customer in Owosso, Michigan to be careful because the extreme bigotry and prejudices of the local residents often turned to violence.

In or about July 1996, Williams was verbally assaulted with a torrent of racial slurs as he entered a store in Bad Axe, Michigan. Shortly thereafter, two men approached Williams in a parking lot, told him "niggers" were not allowed in Bad Axe and threatened that he would be physically harmed if they "caught [him] in the area again."

These threats and verbal assaults caused Williams to fear for his well-being and safety. Although he repeatedly brought the racial threats and intimidation to the attention of his supervisors and senior managers at Astra, they did not comply with his requests for assistance or a transfer from the Saginaw sales territory.

Some time around January 1996, Williams was allegedly subjected to pressure from Astra to execute a letter "endorsing" the affirmative action performance of Astra. According to Williams, this endorsement was intended by senior managers to falsely blunt an ongoing investigation by a Business Week reporter into discriminatory employment practices at Astra. During that time, Williams discussed the matter with other African-American employees at Astra and expressed his fear of losing his job if he failed to succumb to Astra's pressure.

Then, on or about January 16, 1996, Williams received a "We, the Minority Representatives of Astra" letter ("the Minorities Letter") from Bill Brown, an African-American employee at Astra. In the Minorities Letter, Astra sought to have Williams endorse the position that the minority employees of the Company were "United and Proud".

The Minorities Letter stated, inter alia:

At Astra the work environment is superior, we [the Minorities at Astra] are all proud to work for a company filled with career advancement and growth. Each one of us are [sic] in complete control of our own destiny....

[W]e believe Astra to be sensitive and interested in our needs and it is our diversity that makes Astra, Astra. We completely agree with Astra's policies, management and philosophies. Being a member of the A-Team is a membership we are all very proud of and will continue to support.

However, it is unclear from the facts pleaded in the complaint whether Williams signed that letter or what adverse employment consequences Williams suffered as a result of his decision to sign or not to sign the letter.

On or about September 23, 1997, Williams was allegedly constructively terminated and left his position at Astra. As a direct consequence of Astra's conduct, acts and omissions, Williams claims to have suffered damages and injuries, including, but not limited to, severe emotional distress and reduced employment opportunities.

II. Motion to Dismiss

A. Legal Standard

A motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim may be allowed only if it appears, beyond doubt, that the plaintiffs can prove no facts in support of their claim that entitle them to relief. Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45-46, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957). The Court must accept all factual averments in the complaint as true and draw all reasonable inferences in the plaintiff's favor. Garita Hotel Ltd. Partnership v. Ponce Fed. Bank, F.S.B., 958 F.2d 15, 17 (1st Cir.1992).

While a pleading is typically construed liberally in favor of the complaining party, see, e.g., Schuler v. United States, 617 F.2d 605, 608-09 (D.C.Cir.1979), a complaint must allege sufficient facts to provide the defendant "fair notice of the nature of the claim and the grounds upon which it rests." Washington v. James, 782 F.2d 1134, 1140 (2d Cir.1986). Indeed, the First Circuit has stated that Rule 12(b)(6) is not entirely "a toothless tiger" and that plaintiffs must set forth "in their complaint factual allegations, either direct or inferential, regarding each material element necessary to sustain recovery under some actionable legal theory." The Dartmouth Review v. Dartmouth College, 889 F.2d 13, 16 (1st Cir.1989).

Furthermore, with respect to civil rights claims, it is well settled in this Circuit that mere conclusory allegations are insufficient to withstand dispositive motions if no factual support has been provided to the Court. See, e.g., Johnson v. General Electric, 840 F.2d 132, 138 (1st Cir.1988) ("Complaints based on civil rights statutes must do more than state simple conclusions; they must at least outline the facts constituting the alleged violation."); Dewey v. Univ. of New Hampshire, 694 F.2d 1, 3 (1st Cir.1982) (holding that a plaintiff is not entitled to rest on "subjective characterizations" or conclusory descriptions of "a general scenario which could be dominated by unpleaded facts"); Christensen v. Lawrence F. Quigley Memorial Hospital, 656 F.Supp. 14, 16 (D.Mass.1985) ("In civil rights cases, the First Circuit requires a plaintiff to outline specific facts, which if proven would entitle him to relief."). In other words, the alleged facts must "specifically identify the particular instances of discriminatory treatment and, as a logical exercise, adequately support the thesis" of unlawful discrimination. Correa-Martinez v. Arrillaga-Belendez, 903 F.2d 49, 53 (1st Cir.1990) (citing several First Circuit cases).

When a claim is dismissed under Rule 12(b)(6), courts customarily allow leave to amend. See Cortec Indus., Inc. v. Sum Holding L.P., 949 F.2d 42, 48 (2d Cir.1991). If a plaintiff has "at least colorable grounds for relief, justice does ... require leave to amend." Kaster v. Modification Systems, Inc., 731 F.2d 1014, 1018 (2d Cir.1984) (internal quotations omitted).

B. Count I: Title VII Hostile Work Environment Claim

As a basis for dismissal for Count I, Astra argues that Count I should be dismissed because 1) Williams' complaint was not timely filed and 2) the facts, as alleged by Williams in the complaint,...