Felder v. Penn Manufacturing Industries, Inc.

303 F.R.D. 241, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 153938, 2014 WL 5480673
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 28, 2014
DocketCivil Action No. 13-4438
StatusPublished
Cited by27 cases

This text of 303 F.R.D. 241 (Felder v. Penn Manufacturing Industries, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Felder v. Penn Manufacturing Industries, Inc., 303 F.R.D. 241, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 153938, 2014 WL 5480673 (E.D. Pa. 2014).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

McHUGH, District Judge.

Plaintiff Jesse Felder has filed suit against several companies (collectively referred to as “Employer” in the complaint) and a eoworker, claiming under Title VII that he was subject to a hostile work environment. Specifically, Mr. Felder, an African American, alleges that a coworker, Chris Afflerbach, harassed him continuously throughout his approximately six months of employment because of his race. This harassment eventually culminated in Felder purportedly “snapping”—an episode in which Felder assaulted Afflerbach.

Defendants have now filed a motion to dismiss the Second Amended Complaint, asserting that the Plaintiff has failed to adequately allege facts that would support a hostile work environment claim. Because I find the Second Amended Complaint to be sufficient, the motion will be denied.

I. Factual Background

Plaintiff alleges that the harassment began in the lunch room, where Afflerbach spewed racial epithets repeatedly. After complaining, Plaintiff states that he was advised to avoid Afflerbach. Plaintiff began to eat outside the lunch room, and maintains that he brought his own refrigerator and microwave to work.

Eventually, Plaintiff alleges, word of his complaints reached Afflerbach, who was told by a supervisor not to speak to Plaintiff. Afflerbach then purportedly began a silent campaign of harassment in which Afflerbach would seek out Plaintiff and employ hostile and aggressive stares and intimidating body [243]*243language. Plaintiff asserts that this continued two to three times per week for five months, resulting in his attending Bible study as a coping mechanism. Eventually, Plaintiff alleges that the harassment became physical when Afflerbach kicked the boxes Plaintiff was working on and shoulder-checked him, spinning him around. Felder further pleads that he reported this incident to his direct supervisor, who reported the incident to the Human Resources Manager, but no action was taken. The next day, the physical confrontation repeated itself. Plaintiff claims to have reported the incident directly to the Human Resources Manager this time, but again no action was taken.

According to Plaintiff, who was 74 at the time and had come out of retirement to work, he secured a nail-studded bat and went looking for Afflerbach with the intent both to scare and warn him that he would no longer tolerate his behavior. Afflerbach shouted at Plaintiff, and Plaintiff reacted, assaulting him. Supervisors intervened, and shortly after he was told to go home, and then Plaintiff was terminated.

II. Hostile Work Environment

A hostile work environment claim under Title VII requires a showing of the following elements by the plaintiff: (1) the employee suffered intentional discrimination because of membership in a protected class; (2) the discrimination was severe or pervasive; (3) the discrimination detrimentally affected the plaintiff; (4) the discrimination would detrimentally affect a reasonable person in like circumstances; and (5) the existence of responsibility on the part of the employer.1 Mandel v. M & Q Packaging Corp., 706 F.3d 157, 167 (3d Cir.2013) (citing Jensen v. Potter, 435 F.3d 444, 449 (3d Cir. 2006), overruled on other grounds by Burlington N. & Santa Fe Ry. Co. v. White, 548 U.S. 53, 126 S.Ct. 2405, 165 L.Ed.2d 345 (2006)). “The first four elements establish a hostile work environment, and the fifth element determines employer liability.” Id. (citing Huston v. Procter & Gamble Paper Prods. Corp., 568 F.3d 100, 104 (3d Cir. 2009)).

A. “Intentional Discrimination Based on Race”

Plaintiff in this case makes clear allegations that the discriminatory and abusive actions he suffered were based on his race. Plaintiff begins by averring that Afflerbach used racial slurs, including “nigger,” openly in the workplace, and did not limit his tirades to African Americans, but rather included minorities in general. Compl. ¶ 18. This conduct allegedly took place regularly in the lunch room. ¶ 20. Plaintiff alleges that this conduct led him to complain, and Afflerbach admits in related testimony that he was told by a supervisor, Curtis Bates, not to bother Plaintiff. ¶¶22, 24. After Afflerbach had been informed of Plaintiffs complaints about the racist behavior in the lunch room, Plaintiff alleges that Afflerbach began to seek him out and silently harass him on a daily basis for the next five months. ¶¶ 29-30. Such provocation is claimed to have included hostile, aggressive stares and body language. ¶ 31-32. Plaintiff then alleges that this abuse by Afflerbach became physical. ¶¶ 41-42.

Defendants maintain that the above-described conduct does not establish that the behavior by Afflerbach was based on Plaintiffs race. However, the facts alleged are more than enough for purposes of a motion to dismiss. Plaintiff avers that he was subjected to racial slurs by Afflerbach pertaining to a race of which Plaintiff was a member; Plaintiff lodged a complaint; Afflerbach was informed of that complaint; Afflerbach then began a campaign of harassment against Plaintiff. While it could be argued that the harassment was the result of Plaintiffs complaints, Plaintiff has specifically alleged that it was based on race, ¶ 37, and that is enough [244]*244for the present inquiry, even if it could have been motivated by both.2

B. Discrimination as “Severe or Pervasive"

This element is analyzed under the totality of the circumstances, which should include “the frequency of the discriminatory conduct; its severity; whether it is physically threatening or humiliating, or a mere offensive utterance; and whether it unreasonably interferes with an employee’s work performance.” Mandel, 706 F.3d at 168 (quoting Harris v. Forklift Sys., Inc., 510 U.S. 17, 23, 114 S.Ct. 367, 126 L.Ed.2d 295 (1993)). Third Circuit precedent makes clear that these incidents are to be viewed in terms of their cumulative effect rather than as discrete individual events. See Id.

Plaintiff alleges that, in response to Afflerbach’s racial tirades in the lunch room, he was forced to stop eating there, and went so far as to bring in his own refrigerator and microwave to avoid the situation. ¶¶ 25, 28. As mentioned, Plaintiff further alleges that he was sought out by Afflerbaeh at least several times a week for five months, and that Plaintiff was driven to Bible study in order to cope with the ongoing harassment. ¶¶ 30, 32, 35. Eventually, the harassment is claimed to have become physical in nature. ¶ 41. This is certainly enough to satisfy the totality of the circumstances analysis at this early stage in litigation.

C. Discrimination as “Detrimentally Affecting” Plaintiff and a Reasonable Person in Like Circumstances

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303 F.R.D. 241, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 153938, 2014 WL 5480673, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/felder-v-penn-manufacturing-industries-inc-paed-2014.