Equal Emp't Opportunity Comm'n v. UPS Ground Freight, Inc.

344 F. Supp. 3d 1256
District Court, D. Kansas·Decided November 1, 2018·No. Case No. 17-CV-2453-JAR-JPO·Published·Cited by 1 cases

Opinion

JULIE A. ROBINSON, CHIEF UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

*1260Plaintiff Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC") filed this suit against Defendant UPS Ground Freight, Inc. ("UPS Freight") to correct unlawful employment practices on the basis of disability in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"). The Court granted EEOC's Motion for Judgment on the Pleadings on Count II, brought under Fed. R. Civ. P 12(c), and granted injunctive relief prohibiting continuation of the discriminatory practice and policy.1 This matter is now before the Court on UPS Freight's Motion to Modify and/or Vacate the Court's Permanent Injunction and Motion in the Alternative to Stay the Permanent Injunction Pending Ratification and Appeal (Doc. 32). For the reasons explained in detail below, the Court grants in part UPS Freight's motion to modify the injunction and denies its request for a stay.

I. Procedural and Factual Background

The EEOC filed a two-count action to correct unlawful employment practices, alleging (1) UPS Freight violated the ADA by discriminating against Thomas Diebold on the basis of his disability (Count I); and (2) UPS Freight has a facially discriminatory policy against disabled drivers in its current 2013-2018 Collective Bargaining Agreement "CBA") with Defendant Teamsters National UPS Freight Negotiating Committee (Count II). The focus of Count II is Article 21.2 and Article 21.3 of the CBA. UPS Freight filed an Answer admitting (1) the CBA attached as Exhibit A to the Amended Complaint is a true and correct copy;2 (2) that UPS Freight, "pursuant to Article 21, Section 2(a), of the 2013-2018 CBA, provides non-CDL required (non-driving) work at the full rate (100%) of pay to drivers whose CDLs are suspended or revoked for non-medical reasons, including convictions for driving while intoxicated";3 and (3) UPS Freight, "pursuant to Article 21, Section 3(a) of the 2013-2018 CBA ... provides full-time or casual inside work at 90% of the rate of pay for the full-time classification of work being performed to drivers who are judged medically unqualified to drive."4

The EEOC moved for judgment on the pleadings under Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(c), arguing that UPS Freight's admissions were sufficient to prove the existence of a discriminatory policy and meet the EEOC's burden to make a prima facie case of discrimination. The Court agreed that UPS Freight's additional explanations regarding when Article 21.3(a) applies were immaterial, because there are no circumstances under which paying a disabled driver 90% of what others earn is legal under the ADA.5 On July 27, 2018, the Court entered partial judgment on the pleadings on Count II as follows:

1. The CBA in dispute violates 42 U.S.C. § 12112 by discriminating against drivers with disabilities by (1) limiting, segregating, or classifying drivers because of disability adversely *1261affecting the opportunities or status of disabled drivers and (2) using standards, criteria, or methods of administration that have the effect of discrimination on the basis of disability;
2. The CBA in dispute violates 42 U.S.C. § 12112(b)(2) by participating in a contractual relationship that expressly discriminates against medically disabled UPS Freight drivers.6

The Court entered a permanent injunction that:

3. UPS Freight, its officers, agents, servants, employees, attorneys, and all persons in active concert or participation with it, are permanently enjoined from discriminating on the basis of disability in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 12112(a) by enforcing Article 21.3 as written;7 and
4. UPS Freight and the Teamsters National UPS Freight Negotiating Committee are permanently enjoined from negotiating and ratifying terms of the next collective bargaining agreement which would discriminate on the basis of disability in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 12112(a).8

On August 23, 2018, UPS Freight moved to modify and/or vacate the permanent injunction under Fed. R. Civ. P. 60(b)(5) or, in the alternative, to stay the permanent injunction pending ratification of the new CBA. UPS Freight represented that if the request was denied, it intended to appeal the Order to the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals.9 In its motion, UPS Freight stated the CBA had expired July 31, 2018, negotiations on a new CBA began in January 2018, and a tentative "hand shake" agreement was reached on July 12, 2018.10 The tentative new CBA contains the following revised Article 21.3, which shows the language struck through from the prior CBA:

A driver who is judged medically unqualified to drive, but is considered physically fit and qualified to perform other inside jobs, will be afforded the opportunity to displace the least senior fulltime or casual inside employee at such work until he/she can return to his/her driving job. However, if the displacement of a full-time employee with a CDL would negatively affect the employer's operations, the medically disqualified driver may only displace a casual inside employee. "Red-circled" non-CDL cartage employees shall not be subject to displacement in this process. While performing the inside work, the driver will be paid ninety percent (90%) of the appropriate rate of pay for the full-time classification of work being performed. The Company shall attempt to provide eight (8) hours of work, if possible, out of available work.11

The new CBA would retroactively apply for the period August 1, 2018 through July 31, 2023.12

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Equal Emp't Opportunity Comm'n v. UPS Ground Freight, Inc., 344 F. Supp. 3d 1256 (D. Kan. 2018).

344 F. Supp. 3d 1256 (Equal Emp't Opportunity Comm'n v. UPS Ground Freight, Inc.) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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