Cross v. Valley Services, Inc.

963 F. Supp. 2d 1232, 28 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 660, 2013 WL 3994665, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110366
CourtDistrict Court, D. Utah
DecidedAugust 5, 2013
DocketCase No. 2:10-cv-00749 CW
StatusPublished

This text of 963 F. Supp. 2d 1232 (Cross v. Valley Services, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Utah primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cross v. Valley Services, Inc., 963 F. Supp. 2d 1232, 28 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 660, 2013 WL 3994665, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110366 (D. Utah 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM DECISION AND ORDER

CLARK WADDOUPS, District Judge.

INTRODUCTION

After not being promoted to the position of a supervisor, plaintiff John E. Cross filed a complaint with the Utah Labor Commission, alleging that defendant Valley Services, Inc. (‘Valley Services”) discriminated against him based on his disability. Subsequently, Valley Services issued written warnings to Mr. Cross for behavior that allegedly violated company policy. Approximately two years after Mr. Cross filed his complaint with the Labor Commission, Valley Services terminated Mr. Cross. Mr. Cross now asserts claims for (1) discrimination under the [1234]*1234Americans with Disabilities Act, (2) hostile work environment, and (3) retaliation. Valley Services has moved for summary judgment on each of the claims. For the reasons discussed below, the court concludes there are genuine issues of material fact for Mr. Cross’s discrimination claim, but that his claims for hostile work environment and retaliation fail as a matter of law. Therefore, Valley Services’ motion for summary judgment is granted in part and denied in part.

FACTS

Application Process at Valley Services

Valley Services is a non-profit organization committed to employing and retaining disadvantaged individuals with mental health disabilities, low income, or other similar challenges. Depending on qualifications, its employees work as janitors, painters, building and yard maintenance technicians, and so forth. Valley Services recruits many of its employees from Valley Mental Health. It asks applicants whether they are currently qualified to receive social security disability insurance or temporary assistance for needy families. Valley Services also asks if the applicant has ever worked in supported employment. Valley Services Application for Employment (Dkt. No. 44, Ex. D).

Valley Services then asks applicants to complete voluntarily a Job Interests Questionnaire. That questionnaire asks whether the applicant is a customer of Valley Mental Health, whether the person has a therapist or case manager, and what type of public assistance the person receives. Job Interests Questionnaire (Dkt. No. 26, Ex. D.). Along with his application, Mr. Cross completed the questionnaire. He disclosed that he was a customer of Valley Mental Health and had a current therapist. Mr. Cross is allegedly disabled due to depression that results in angry outbursts. Despite this alleged disability, Valley Services hired Mr. Cross in October 2002 to be a janitor.

After Mr. Cross was hired, Valley Services added his name to a large whiteboard it kept in a common area. The whiteboard listed each employee’s name, the department to which they were assigned, the supervisor of that department, and the manager of the department. Mr. Cross’s name was written in red on the board. Picture of Whiteboard, 2 (Dkt. No. 26, Ex. F). This signified Mr. Cross was disabled. See Cross Depo., 20:15-25 (Dkt. No. 26, Ex. B). The names of non-disabled individuals were written in black. Id.

Mr. Cross was asked about the whiteboard during his deposition. He testified as follows:

Q. Did Valley do anything to make you feel self-conscious about your disability?
A. No.
Q. No? What did the whiteboard make you feel self-conscious about your depression or your disability at all?
A. Not really. Not really. More than anything, it was just the fact that you were there listed as disabled. Nobody had any idea, you know.
Q. Gotcha. But as far as your know as far as it affecting your work, did it really affect your work, the fact that the board was there?
A. No.
Q. Okay. So is it a fair statement other than being, you know, kind of a minor annoyance, it didn’t affect you at work too much?
A. Yeah, for the most part, yeah.
Q. Is that a fair statement?
A. Yeah.

Cross Depo. II, 73:16-74:12 (Dkt. No. 23, Ex. A(l)). When the whiteboard first went up, Mr. Cross made a remark about [1235]*1235it, but never filed a formal complaint. Id. at 74:20-75:7.

Disabled Individuals in Management Positions

Approximately sixty-one percent of the employees at Valley Services are disabled. The whiteboard showed one disabled person employed as a “custodial supervisor.” Picture of Whiteboard, 2 (Dkt. No. 26, Ex. F). All other supervisor positions were filled by a non-disabled person. Likewise, the whiteboard showed that all manager positions and other top positions were filled by a non-disabled person. Id. Valley Services contends, however, that “approximately 45.71% of supervisors at Valley were either disabled or disadvantaged” during the relevant time period. Decl. of Wells McDonald, ¶ 7 (Dkt. No. 23, Ex. B). Valley Services provides no foundational support for this calculation.

Mr. Cross, however, submitted a document produced by Valley Services in response to Mr. Cross’s Labor Commission complaint. According to that document, Valley Services classifies the position of “Team Leader” as a “Management/Supervision” position. Management/Supervision Statistics (Dkt. No. 26, Ex. G). Of the twenty-one Team Leader positions, thirteen were held by individuals who were disabled or disadvantaged in comparison to eight who were non-disabled. Id. In contrast, of the thirteen upper management positions (supervisor, assistant supervisor, manager), two were held by disabled individuals and eleven were held by non-disabled individuals. Id. Thus, while Valley Services does have disabled individuals serving in leadership positions, the positions are largely in lower management rather than upper management. Mr. Cross’s complaint focuses on Valley Services’ alleged discrimination for upper management positions.

Mr. Cross worked for Valley Services as a janitor for approximately three years and was then reassigned to be painter. Four years after he was hired, Mr. Cross was promoted to a maintenance technician position in October 2006. Prior to working at Valley Services, Mr. Cross not only had experience in building maintenance, he had been a building maintenance supervisor. Consequently, when Mr. Cross learned in July 2007 that a Maintenance Supervisor position was opening at Valley Services, he applied for the position.1 Valley Services then told Mr. Cross it had decided against filling the position.

On or about July 23, 2007, however, Valley Services hired Nick Flink. Mr. Cross alleges that Valley Services told its employees that Nick Flink was a co-worker when in actuality he was hired as the Maintenance Supervisor. On or about April 10, 2008,2 Mr. Flink took disciplinary action against an employee in the maintenance department. When Mr. Cross questioned how he had authority to take the action, Mr. Flink allegedly told Mr. Cross that he had the authority because he was the Maintenance Supervisor. Mr. Flink is not disabled.

Mr. Cross filed his Labor Commission complaint on May 22, 2008.3 He alleged [1236]*1236he had not been promoted due to his disability, despite the fact that he had more maintenance experience than Mr.

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963 F. Supp. 2d 1232, 28 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 660, 2013 WL 3994665, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 110366, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cross-v-valley-services-inc-utd-2013.