Adams v. Able Building Supply, Inc.

57 P.3d 280, 114 Wash. App. 291, 2002 Wash. App. LEXIS 2638, 90 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 429
CourtCourt of Appeals of Washington
DecidedNovember 5, 2002
DocketNo. 20902-4-III
StatusPublished
Cited by28 cases

This text of 57 P.3d 280 (Adams v. Able Building Supply, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Washington primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Adams v. Able Building Supply, Inc., 57 P.3d 280, 114 Wash. App. 291, 2002 Wash. App. LEXIS 2638, 90 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 429 (Wash. Ct. App. 2002).

Opinion

Sweeney, J.

This wrongful termination claim requires a showing of, among other things, serious, offensive, unwelcome conduct directed toward women. And while this record suggests rude, boorish, and sometimes outrageously inappropriate conduct by a supervisor, it does not support a claim of discrimination based on sex. We, therefore, affirm the summary dismissal of Darlene Adams’s complaint.

FACTS

Tom Thomas is the manager of Able Building Supply’s Ephrata store. Darlene Adams was a retail sales clerk. Ms. Adams presented evidence that Mr. Thomas was a rude, boorish, thoroughly obnoxious supervisor prone to outrageous temper tantrums. The following four displays of temper underlie the basis for Ms. Adams’s claim.

1. Another employee filled Mr. Thomas’s office with balloons on his birthday. Mr. Thomas became enraged and popped all the balloons with a pencil. Ms. Adams was not present during this outburst. She learned of it from another employee. Later in the day, Ms. Adams wished Mr. Thomas a happy birthday and remarked that the balloons had been a nice gesture. He replied, “I don’t have time for this type of crap.” Clerk’s Papers (CP) at 42-43.

[294]*2942. Ms. Adams and three male employees attended a meeting with Mr. Thomas. At the end of the meeting, Mr. Thomas looked at his watch, swore, slammed a pencil down on the desk, and stormed out of the room. The pencil bounced and flew past Ms. Adams’s head. She conceded it was not deliberately aimed at her and that it did not strike her. The incident had nothing to do with her or anyone else personally. She agreed it was just the way Mr. Thomas was. CP at 47-49, 165.

3. Ms. Adams was helping another employee to troubleshoot her computer. Mr. Thomas became annoyed by their yelling back and forth across the store. He left his office angry and swearing. He roughly shouldered Ms. Adams away from the computer. She stumbled against a wall. A shouting match ensued. Ms. Adams ended up crying in the bathroom. Ms. Adams never saw Mr. Thomas push a male employee. CP at 50-55, 145-48.

4. Ms. Adams was having difficulty removing a sawhorse from its box. Mr. Thomas “went ballistic” because he preferred that merchandise be left in the boxes. CP at 44. He yanked the box out of her hand. While struggling to extricate the sawhorse from its box, Mr. Thomas aggravated a sore finger. This led to another public display of angry swearing. CP at 44-46, 165.

In addition, Ms. Adams often heard Mr. Thomas yelling at other employees, including most of the employees in the store. Sometimes Mr. Thomas’s yelling could be heard throughout the store. Mr. Thomas also yelled at men. The tantrums were always over work-related issues.

After the shoving incident, Ms. Adams gave Mr. Thomas two weeks’ notice of her resignation. She agreed to stay on a day-to-day basis if he would work on controlling his temper. Mr. Thomas refused. And Ms. Adams quit.

Ms. Adams filed an action against Mr. Thomas and Able for damages and attorney fees under RCW 49.60.030, Washington’s Law Against Discrimination. She alleged that Mr. Thomas subjected her to a “demeaning, hostile, and [295]*295threatening pattern of behavior” that affected the terms and conditions of her employment. CP at 5. She alleged this behavior was gender discrimination that forced her to resign.

The employer, Able, moved for summary judgment. Able argued that, even granting the truth of all of Ms. Adams’s complaints, she did not state a claim for gender discrimination because she had shown no more than that Mr. Thomas was unpleasant, unreasonable, and rude. Able contended Ms. Adams had failed to establish either (a) that the conduct was sufficiently severe or threatening to affect the terms and conditions of her employment, or (b) that the conduct was motivated by animus toward women.

Able produced declarations from five employees, four male and one female, who testified that Mr. Thomas yelled at men and women equally and only about job-related issues. Able also proffered Mr. Thomas’s declaration in which he conceded that he yelled and swore at employees of both genders but denied ever making demeaning or gender specific derogatory comments.

The court granted summary judgment.

DISCUSSION

Standard of Review. Ms. Adams is appealing a summary judgment. When reviewing an order of summary judgment, we engage in the same inquiry as the trial court. Honey v. Davis, 131 Wn.2d 212, 217, 930 P.2d 908, 937 P.2d 1052 (1997); Sangster v. Albertson’s, Inc., 99 Wn. App. 156, 160, 991 P.2d 674 (2000). Summary judgment is appropriate when there is no genuine issue of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. CR 56(c); Hash v. Children’s Orthopedic Hosp. & Med. Ctr., 110 Wn.2d 912, 915, 757 P.2d 507 (1988).

Prima Facie Showing of Sex Discrimination. Employers are prohibited from discriminating in “terms or conditions of employment” based on a person’s sex. RCW 49-.60.180(3); Payne v. Children’s Home Soc’y of Wash., Inc., [296]*29677 Wn. App. 507, 510, 892 P.2d 1102 (1995). Harassment is actionable if a hostile work environment created by sexual harassment affects conditions of employment. RCW 49-.60.180(3); Payne, 77 Wn. App. at 511 (citing Glasgow v. Ga.-Pac. Corp., 103 Wn.2d 401, 693 P.2d 708 (1985); Coville v. Cobarc Servs., Inc., 73 Wn. App. 433, 869 P.2d 1103 (1994); Thompson v. Berta Enters., Inc., 72 Wn. App. 531, 864 P.2d 983 (1994); Delahunty v. Cahoon, 66 Wn. App. 829, 835-36, 832 P.2d 1378 (1992); Fisher v. Tacoma Sch. Dist. No. 10, 53 Wn. App. 591, 769 P.2d 318 (1989); Henderson v. Pennwalt Corp., 41 Wn. App. 547, 704 P.2d 1256 (1985)). The Law Against Discrimination is liberally construed to accomplish its purpose. RCW 49.60.020.

To establish the elements of an actionable hostile work environment, an employee must demonstrate (1) offensive and unwelcome conduct that (2) was serious enough to affect the terms or conditions of employment, (3) occurred because of sex, and (4) can be imputed to the employer.

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Bluebook (online)
57 P.3d 280, 114 Wash. App. 291, 2002 Wash. App. LEXIS 2638, 90 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 429, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/adams-v-able-building-supply-inc-washctapp-2002.