Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Port Authority of New York & New Jersey

768 F.3d 247, 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 18533, 98 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 45,165, 124 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1071
CourtCourt of Appeals for the Second Circuit
DecidedSeptember 29, 2014
DocketNo. 13-2705-cv
StatusPublished
Cited by362 cases

This text of 768 F.3d 247 (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Port Authority of New York & New Jersey) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

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Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, 768 F.3d 247, 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 18533, 98 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 45,165, 124 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1071 (2d Cir. 2014).

Opinion

DEBRA ANN LIVINGSTON, Circuit Judge:

Following a three-year investigation, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) filed suit against the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (“Port Authority”), asserting that the Port Authority paid its female nonsupervisory attorneys at a lesser rate than their male counterparts for “equal work,” in violation [249]*249of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (“EPA”), 29 U.S.C. § 206(d).1 To support its claim that the attorneys performed “equal work,” the EEOC pled broad facts concerning the attorneys’ jobs (such as that the attorneys all have “the same professional degree,” work “under time pressures and deadlines,” and utilize both “analytical” and “legal” skills) that are generalizable to virtually all practicing attorneys. The EEOC did not, however, plead any facts particular to the attorneys’ actual job duties. Instead, the EEOC proceeded under a theory that, at the Port Authority, “an attorney is an attorney is an attorney” — that is, that the dozens of nonsupervisory attorneys working at the Port Authority during the relevant period (in practice areas ranging from Contracts to Maritime and Aviation, and from Labor Relations to Workers’ Compensation) were all doing equal work — and that, as a result, the EEOC was not required to detail similarities between the attorneys’ job duties (or other factual matter as to the content of the attorneys’ jobs) to state a plausible EPA claim.

Holding to the contrary, the district court granted the Port Authority’s motion for judgment on the pleadings under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(c). See EEOC v. Port Auth. of N.Y.&N.J., No. 10 Civ. 7462(NRB), 2012 WL 1758128, at *6 (S.D.N.Y. May 17, 2012). We conclude that the EEOC’s failure to allege any facts concerning the attorneys’ actual job duties deprives the Court of any basis from which to draw a reasonable inference that the attorneys performed “equal work,” the touchstone of an EPA claim. Accordingly, the complaint failed to state a plausible claim for relief. We therefore affirm the judgment of the district court.

Background2

In 2007, spurred by a charge of discrimination filed by a female attorney in the Port Authority’s law department, the EEOC began an investigation into the Port Authority’s pay practices. The Port Authority states that it cooperated with the investigation, a characterization the EEOC does not contest. In 2010, the EEOC issued a determination letter announcing its conclusion that the Port Authority had violated the EPA by paying its female attorneys at a lesser rate than its male attorneys. Specifically, the EEOC asserted that a comparison of the salaries of “similarly situated attorneys” revealed that “males were earning more than their female comparators, and in most instances by a wide margin.” Moreover, according to the EEOC, “[a] review of the evidence indicated] that the pay disparity [was] not explained by ... factors other than sex.” The EEOC did not identify additional claimants, any comparators, or facts supporting its conclusion that the attorneys at issue were “similarly situated.” The determination letter offered conciliation discussions, which the Port Authority declined. The EEOC then initiated this suit.

The EEOC’s complaint alleges, essentially in sum, that the Port Authority violated the EPA because:

[250]*250The Port Authority has paid and continues to pay wages to its non-supervisory female attorneys at rates less than the rates paid to male employees in the same establishments for substantially equal work for jobs the performance of which requires equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and which are performed under similar working conditions.

J.A. 11-12. The complaint charges that while nonsupervisory attorneys share the same job code, female attorneys are paid salaries “less than male attorneys having the same job code,” and that “[t]he disparity in pay cannot be attributed to factors other than sex.” J.A. 12. The Port Authority answered, and at a subsequent conference, the district court suggested its skepticism that the EEOC had adequately pled a claim, despite its access to evidence gathered during the three-year investigation. Accordingly, the district court ordered the Port Authority to serve and the EEOC to respond to interrogatories to elucidate “what [the EEOC’s] position is.”

In its responses to the Port Authority’s interrogatories, the EEOC identified fourteen female nonsupervisory attorneys as claimants as well as a host of alleged comparators for each claimant, with the claimants and comparators presented in a table comparing their dates of bar admission, dates of service with the Port Authority, salaries, and divisions. The EEOC asserted that the claimants’ and comparators’ jobs were substantially similar based on broad allegations that, inter alia, the attorneys served the same client, the Port Authority; there were no job descriptions differentiating between jobs; and the attorneys’ jobs all demanded a professional demeanor, compliance with rules of professional conduct, and familiarity with legal documents. The EEOC also provided allegations specific to the Port Authority to support its contention that the Port Authority understood the claimants’ and comparators’ jobs to be similar, including that the attorneys shared the same job code; the Port Authority’s attorney “maturity curve” — or chart for determining salaries — did not differentiate between practice areas or divisions when setting upper and lower limits for salaries, but instead relied on years of legal experience; the Port Authority used the same criteria— such as “decision making” and “interpersonal skills” — to evaluate the performance of all its nonsupervisory attorneys; and the Port Authority did not invariably separate work by practice area, but instead assigned work across divisions, and sometimes moved attorneys between divisions or into consolidated divisions.

Finally, the EEOC asserted that the claimants’ and comparators’ jobs demanded substantially equal skill, effort, and responsibility, and were performed under similar working conditions — the statutory criteria underlying the equal work inquiry. As to skill, the EEOC alleged that the attorneys’ jobs “do not require different experience, training, education, or ability,” and instead require:

the same professional degree and admission to the bar[;] ... problem-solving and analytical skills to identify, research, analyze, evaluate, and resolve legal issues clearly and persuasively!;] ... the use of professional judgment and legal skills to draft, review, and implement legal documents!;] • • • the ability to understand and comply with department, agency, and legal instructions and procedures!;] • • • the ability to consult with and provide legal advice to the same client, the Port Authority!;] ... the ability to interact and consult with outside legal staff or other Port Authority attorneys on client matters!;] ... the same degree of diligence and persistence!; and] ... the ability to manage time, [251]*251meet deadlines, and prioritize assignments.

J.A. 60. As to effort, the EEOC alleged, without elaboration, that the attorneys’ jobs:

require the same physical or mental exertion[;] ... are performed under time pressures and deadlines!; and] ...

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768 F.3d 247, 2014 U.S. App. LEXIS 18533, 98 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 45,165, 124 Fair Empl. Prac. Cas. (BNA) 1071, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/equal-employment-opportunity-commission-v-port-authority-of-new-york-new-ca2-2014.