Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Chicago Miniature Lamp Works

622 F. Supp. 1281, 1985 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14340, 38 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 35,709, 39 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 297
CourtDistrict Court, N.D. Illinois
DecidedOctober 30, 1985
Docket79 C 2362
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 622 F. Supp. 1281 (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Chicago Miniature Lamp Works) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, N.D. Illinois primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Chicago Miniature Lamp Works, 622 F. Supp. 1281, 1985 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14340, 38 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 35,709, 39 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 297 (N.D. Ill. 1985).

Opinion

FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW

SHADUR, District Judge.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) and Ed Randolph (“Randolph”) have sued Chicago Miniature Lamp Works (“Chicago Miniature”), charging race-based discrimination against blacks as *1286 a class and, in Randolph’s case, individually. After a bench trial the parties have supplemented their extensive pretrial submissions by tendering proposed post-trial findings of fact and conclusions of law.

In accordance with Fed.R.Civ.P. (“Rule”) 52(a), this Court finds the facts specially as set forth in the following Findings of Fact (“Findings”) and states the following Conclusions of Law (“Conclusions”). To the extent if any of the Findings as stated reflect legal conclusions, they shall be deemed Conclusions; to the extent if any of the Conclusions as stated reflect factual findings, they shall be deemed Findings.

Findings of Fact

Parties

1. EEOC is the agency of the United States charged with administration and enforcement of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (“Act”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e to 2009e-17 (“Title VII”) (Stip. ¶ 3). 1

2. Randolph is an individual citizen of the United States and a resident of the Northern District of Illinois. Randolph’s race is black (Stip. ¶ 4).

3. Until October 1980 Chicago Miniature was a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of Illinois, with its only office and factory located at 4433 North Ravenswood Avenue, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois. Since then Chicago Miniature has been, and it now is, a division of General Instrument Corporation (“General Instrument”), a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of Delaware 2 (Stip. ¶¶ 1, 10). Jurisdiction and Venue

4. Chicago Miniature has been and is engaged in the manufacture and sale of miniature and sub-miniature incandescent and neon lamps and associated components and subassemblies. Its lamp products are sold primarily to original equipment manufacturers for a variety of industrial and consumer product applications (Stip. ¶ 9). Chicago Miniature was and is now an employer in an industry affecting commerce within the meaning of Sections 2000e(g) and (h) (Stip. ¶ 2).

5. Randolph was hired and first employed by Chicago Miniature as a “programmer analyst” (Randolph Tr. 147). He remained employed by Chicago Miniature (receiving one promotion and three salary increases) from November 17, 1975 through approximately February 6, 1978 (Stip. ¶ 16). On March 9, 1978 Randolph filed a timely Charge of Discrimination (the “Charge,” P.Ex. 2) with EEOC’s Chicago District Office, alleging Chicago Miniature had discriminated against him in denying him a promotion to the position of Data Processing Manager because of his race (Stip. ¶ 5).

6. In investigating the Charge EEOC discovered and investigated evidence indicating Chicago Miniature discriminated against blacks as a class, on account of their race, in recruitment, hiring and promotions (Morgan Tr. 1518-20).

7. On November 9, 1978 EEOC found reasonable cause to believe:

(a) Chicago Miniature had discriminated against Randolph by failing to promote him to the position of Data Processing Manager because of his race.
(b) Chicago Miniature discriminated against blacks as a class, on account of their race, in recruitment, hiring and promotions.

EEOC’s findings of reasonable cause to believe were set forth in its November 9 “Letter of Determination” mailed to Chicago Miniature and Randolph (Morgan Tr. 1518-19; P.Ex. 6).

8. EEOC filed this action June 8, 1979. On November 9, 1979 the Court granted Randolph leave to intervene in his own behalf as a party plaintiff.

*1287 9. EEOC elected to proceed to trial only with respect to (a) Chicago Miniature’s discrimination against blacks as a class in recruitment and hiring for entry-level factory jobs and (b) Chicago Miniature’s refusal and failure to promote Randolph because of his race (FPTO Att. I).

10. Jurisdiction and venue are not disputed by the parties (Tr. 2391-97; Stip. ¶ 8).

11. From sometime in 1977 through October 1979 William Curran (“Curran”) was chief executive and operating officer of Chicago Miniature, holding the title of Executive Vice-President (Stip. ¶ 12).

12. From about 1972 through August 1980 Armella Simon (“Simon”) was employed by Chicago Miniature as its Personnel Manager (Stip. ¶ 13). Since then Magalis Trueva (“Trueva”) has succeeded Simon as the person with primary responsibility for filling openings for entry-level employees at Chicago Miniature (Trueva Tr. 1540).

13. From and after May 16, 1979 Donald Howard (“Howard”) was employed by Chicago Miniature as its Director of Human Resources (Stip. ¶ 14).

14. Daniel Hoeh (“Hoeh”) was employed at Chicago Miniature as Data Processing Manager for a period of approximately eight years ending in October 1977. Hoeh’s responsibilities as Data Processing Manager included the hiring of personnel for the data processing department. It was Hoeh who, after interviewing Randolph, hired him as a Programmer Analyst (Hoeh Tr. 17, 25, 58; P.Exs. 9, 37).

Chicago Miniature’s Reporting of Its Work Force Composition

15. In accordance with Title VII, Chicago Miniature filed with EEOC EEO-1 reports, signed by authorized Chicago Miniature management personnel (including Simon and Howard), for each of the years 1966 through 1984 (Stip. ¶ 19; P.Exs. 81-95, 172-74). Those EEO-1 reports set forth, by race, sex and national origin, the number of persons employed by Chicago Miniature, as of a given payroll date in each year, in each of nine job categories identified in the reports (Stip. ¶ 20); Elkhanialy 1/16 Tr. 44-45). Entry-level factory jobs are shown in the “operative,” “laborer” (none reported) and “service worker” job categories in the EEO-1 reports (Stip. ¶ 23; Simon Tr. 997).

16. All data in EEO-1 reports is 3 “employer-generated”: It is the employer, not EEOC, that determines the race, national origin and sex of its employees, decides under which of the job classifications employees are reported and makes the numerical count of the employees in each category (Stip. ¶¶ 19, 21-22; Elkhanialy 1/16 Tr. 45; P.Ex. 124 at 2-3).

17. For the years 1970 through 198J Chicago Miniature’s work force composition, as reported in its EEO-1 reports, was as set forth in the table attached as Appendix (“App.”) 1 (P.Ex. 124, Table I; P.Exs. 84-95 [EEO-1 reports]; Elkhanialy 1/16 Tr. 45-58).

18. For the years 1982-83 (after this action was filed), not reflected in App. 1, the number of blacks employed by Chicago Miniature in entry-level operative and service job categories continued to decline.

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622 F. Supp. 1281, 1985 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 14340, 38 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 35,709, 39 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 297, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/equal-employment-opportunity-commission-v-chicago-miniature-lamp-works-ilnd-1985.