Eisenberg v. The County Of Nassau

CourtDistrict Court, E.D. New York
DecidedAugust 30, 2019
Docket2:18-cv-01742
StatusUnknown

This text of Eisenberg v. The County Of Nassau (Eisenberg v. The County Of Nassau) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Eisenberg v. The County Of Nassau, (E.D.N.Y. 2019).

Opinion

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT EASTERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK --------------------------------------------------------------------x ALYSSA EISENBERG,

Plaintiff, MEMORANDUM AND ORDER -against- 18-cv-1742 (JMA)(SIL)

THE COUNTY OF NASSAU, EDWARD MANGANO, CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION, INC., LOCAL 830, AFSCME, JERRY LARICCHIUTA, and RONALD GURRIERI

Defendants. --------------------------------------------------------------------x

STEVEN I. LOCKE, United States Magistrate Judge: By way of Complaint filed on March 21, 2018, Plaintiff Alyssa Eisenberg (“Plaintiff” or “Eisenberg”) commenced this action against the County of Nassau (the “County”), Edward Mangano (“Mangano” and together with the County, the “County Defendants”), the Civil Service Employees Association, Inc., Local 830, AFSCME (the “CSEA”), Jerry Laricchiuta (“Laricchiuta”) and Ronald Gurrieri (“Gurrieri”) (the CSEA, Laricchiuta and Gurrieri collectively, the “CSEA Defendants” and together with the County Defendants, the “Defendants”) for violations of various federal and state laws arising out of Plaintiff’s employment as a crossing guard for the County. See Complaint (“Compl.”), Docket Entry (“DE”) [1]. On November 9, 2018, Eisenberg filed an Amended Complaint. See Amended Complaint (“Amend. Compl.”), DE [33]. Presently before the Court, pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c), see DE [60], are Defendants’ motions to dismiss Plaintiff’s Amended Complaint. See DEs [35], [44]. For the reasons set forth below, the Court grants Defendants’ motions to dismiss.1 I. BACKGROUND

Unless otherwise indicated, the facts set forth herein are taken from the Amended Complaint and are accepted as true for purposes of the instant motions. Eisenberg was employed by the County as a crossing guard from April 2001 to September 2017.2 See Amend. Compl. ¶¶ 16, 40. In addition to serving as a crossing guard, Plaintiff also performed at least ten hours per week of “clerical work” at the police precinct. See id. at ¶¶ 18-19. In her capacity as a County employee, Eisenberg was a member of the CSEA, and consequently, the terms of her employment were

subject to the collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”) negotiated by the CSEA Defendants and the County Defendants. See id. at ¶ 17. In June 2016, the County Defendants “drastically” changed the duties of crossing guards by changing the classification of “clerical work” to “Out of Title Work.”3 See id. at ¶ 20. Although she does not explain how, Plaintiff alleges that this change in the duties of crossing guards, along with her medical problems arising

from breast cancer and complications related to treatment rendered her unable to

1 This motion is before the Court for decision on consent of the parties. See DE [60]. 2 Eisenberg does not provide the date on which she resigned from her job. However, the Plaintiff’s Affidavit, the Amended Complaint and exhibits submitted with Eisenberg’s oppositions to the instant motions indicate that she was employed as a crossing guard until at least September 2017. See, e.g., Plaintiff’s Affidavit, DE [40], ¶¶ 22, 24; Amend. Compl. ¶ 40 (noting that Plaintiff sent an initial demand letter to Defendants regarding issues raised in the instant lawsuit on September 15, 2017); Memorandum of Law in Opposition to the County Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss (“Opp. to County Memo”), DE [41], Exhibit (“Ex”) F (doctor’s letter clearing Eisenberg to return to work on September 11, 2017); Opp. to County Memo, Ex. G (work e-mail dated February 22, 2017). 3 Plaintiff does not explain what “Out of Title Work” or the change in her duties entail. continue her job as a crossing guard. See id. at ¶¶ 21-22. Had the County Defendants provided Eisenberg with “reasonable accommodation[s],” she could have continued working despite her medical condition. See id. at ¶¶ 33-36. However, the County

Defendants did not provide such accommodations, and accordingly, Plaintiff “was forced to resign.” See id. at ¶¶ 26-27.4 Subsequently, Eisenberg contacted the CSEA Defendants to represent her in connection with her disability discrimination claim against the County Defendants. See id. at ¶ 37. The CSEA Defendants, however, “failed to adequately represent” her. See id. at ¶ 38. As a result of these events, Plaintiff commenced this action on March 21, 2018, alleging: (i) violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act, 42 U.S.C § 12112, et seq.

(the “ADA”) against the County Defendants; (ii) breach of the CBA against the County Defendants; (iii) violation of the New York State Human Rights Law, N.Y. Exec. Law § 296, et seq. (“NYSHRL”) against the County Defendants; (iv) violation of Section 8 of the National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 158, et seq. (the “NLRA”) against the CSEA Defendants; and (v) breach of contract against the CSEA Defendants. See Compl. ¶¶ 34-68. Eisenberg then filed an Amended Complaint, with leave of the

court, on November 9, 2018. See DE [33].5 The County Defendants move to dismiss the Amended Complaint on the grounds that it fails to state a claim upon which relief can be granted. See Memorandum of Law in Support of County Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss Pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(6) (“County Memo”), DE [37], 4-12. The

4 As set forth above, neither the Amended Complaint, nor any of the submissions related to the instant motions indicate the date of Plaintiff’s resignation. 5 The Honorable Joan M. Azrack granted Eisenberg leave to file an amended complaint “for the limited purpose of specifying the disability from which she alleges she suffered.” See DE [32]. CSEA Defendants separately move to dismiss on the grounds that this Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction over the claims asserted against them and, in the alternative, that the claims are time-barred under the applicable statute of

limitations and otherwise fail to state a claim for relief. See Memorandum of Law in Support of the CSEA Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss (“CSEA Memo”), DE [46], 4-6. II. LEGAL STANDARDS

A. Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1) Under Rule 12(b)(1) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (“Fed. R. Civ. P.”), a federal court must dismiss a claim when it lacks jurisdiction over the subject matter of the action. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(b)(1); see also Makarova v. United States, 201 F.3d 110, 113 (2d Cir. 2000) (“A case is properly dismissed for lack of subject matter jurisdiction under Rule 12(b)(1) when the district court lacks the statutory or constitutional power to adjudicate it.”) (citation omitted). The party asserting subject matter jurisdiction has the burden to prove the court’s jurisdiction by a preponderance of the evidence. See Vailette v. Lindsay, No. 11-cv-3610, 2014 WL 4101513, at *3 (E.D.N.Y. Aug. 18, 2014) (citation omitted).

In deciding a motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, the court must assume that all factual allegations in the complaint are true and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the non-moving party. C.K. v. Bd. of Educ. of the Westhampton Beach Sch. Dist., 185 F.

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Eisenberg v. The County Of Nassau, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/eisenberg-v-the-county-of-nassau-nyed-2019.