Gray v. Sears, Roebuck & Co., Inc.

131 F. Supp. 2d 895, 11 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1650, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1629, 80 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 40,448, 2001 WL 137454
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Texas
DecidedJanuary 5, 2001
DocketCiv.A. H-98-2211
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 131 F. Supp. 2d 895 (Gray v. Sears, Roebuck & Co., Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Texas primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Gray v. Sears, Roebuck & Co., Inc., 131 F. Supp. 2d 895, 11 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1650, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1629, 80 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 40,448, 2001 WL 137454 (S.D. Tex. 2001).

Opinion

*898 MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

WERLEIN, District Judge.

Pending is Defendant’s Motion for Summary Judgment (Document No. 25). After carefully considering the motion, response, reply, summary judgment evidence, and applicable law, the Court concludes that Defendant’s motion for summary judgment (Document No. 25) should be granted.

I. Background

Defendant Sears, Roebuck & Co., Inc. (“Sears”) has employed Plaintiff Don Gray (“Gray”) for over thirty years. Gray has diabetes and, on two occasions over the past seven years, Gray’s diabetes required him to take medical leaves of absence. Alleging that Sears unlawfully demoted him after he returned from these leaves, Gray filed this action against Sears under the Family and Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”), the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”), and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”). In addition, Gray also asserts that Sears intentionally and negligently inflicted emotional distress upon him and that Sears breached its duty to deal with its employees fairly.

In October 1998, Gray was working as the manager in the Brand Central Department in Sears’s store at Willowbrook Mall in Houston. During that month, Gray met with his supervisor and store manager, Terry Kendrick (“Kendrick”), who disciplined Gray for what Kendrick believed was a “lack of organization” in Gray’s department. See Document No. 26, Exhibit B at ¶ 3. Gray believed the reprimand was unfairly given. See Document No. 31, Exhibit 8 at 1-2. Gray also testified that, during the meeting, “Kendrick stated that he knew I had health problems, but the company was a company of figures and results and that I should take a medical leave or run the risk of being terminated.” 1 Id. at 2. A few weeks later, Gray requested a leave of absence in order to resolve his health problems. See Document No. 26, Exhibit A-3. Gray’s request was granted. See Document No. 26, Exhibit B at ¶ 3. Kendrick placed another employee in Gray’s position several weeks after Gray began his leave. See id. at ¶ 4.

In January 1995, Gray returned to Kendrick with a doctor’s note clearing Gray to return to work. See id. Since Gray’s previous position had been filled by another employee, Kendrick assigned Gray to work as an Auto Center Manager in the same Willowbrook store. See id. While Gray worked in this position, Sears restructured its operations, separating its auto centers from the main department stores and providing its auto centers with a separate management structure. See id. at ¶ 5. Consequently, Kendrick no longer had supervisory authority over Gray. See id.

In April 1996, Gray met with his new supervisor, Kelly Craig (“Craig”), and requested to take a second medical leave. See Document No. 26, Exhibit C at ¶ 3. At the same meeting, Craig spoke with Gray about “several deficiencies” in the operation of the Auto Center. See id. Gray’s request to take a medical leave was granted, and Craig assigned another employee, Lisa Adame (“Adame”), -to Gray’s position as Auto Center Manager in May 1996. See id.

The parties dispute the events surrounding Gray’s request to return to work from his second leave of absence. According to Gray, he contacted Bob Kelsey (“Kelsey”), Craig’s supervisor, “right around” April 1, 1997. See Document No. 26, Exhibit A at 210. Kelsey told Gray that he could not return to his old position as Auto Center Manager in the Willowbrook store because Adame still held the position. See id. at 211; Document No. 31, Exhibit 8 at 4. *899 Gray also testified that Kelsey “continued through the next hour trying to talk me into going into sales, working part-time and getting another job outside the company, or quitting altogether ...” Document No. 31, Exhibit 8 at 4.

After Gray continued to request to return to work full-time at Sears, Kelsey directed Gray to contact his old supervisor, Craig. When Gray did so, according to Gray, Craig “immediately” responded that he had no openings. See Document No. 31, Exhibit 8 at 4. However, approximately eleven days later, Craig informed Gray “there was a new opening,” id. at 5, in the manager position at the Deerbrook Auto Center and offered the position to Gray. The Deerbrook Auto Center is also in the Houston area, approximately twenty miles away from the Willowbrook Auto Center. The previous manager at the Deerbrook Auto Center was Avais Morris (“Morris”), who left his position in order to replace Adame in Gray’s old position as manager of the Willowbrook Auto Center. According to Gray, Morris replaced Adame sometime after Gray contacted Kelsey and before Craig offered the Deerbrook position to Gray. 2

Gray accepted the position at the Deer-brook store. There is no summary judgment evidence that Gray is not still employed as manager at the Deerbrook store.

II. The Summary Judgment Standard

Rule 56(c) provides that summary judgment “shall be rendered forthwith if the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Fed. R.CivJP. 56(c). A dispute about a material fact is “genuine” if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a ver-diet for the nonmoving party. Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2510, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). A party seeking summary judgment bears the initial burden of informing the district court of the basis for the motion, and identifying those portions of the pleadings, depositions, answers to interrogatories, and admissions on file, together with the affidavits, if any, which the moving party believes demonstrate the absence of a genuine issue of material fact. See Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 2554, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986).

Once the movant carries this burden, the burden shifts to the nonmovant to show that summary judgment should not be granted. See id. at 2553-54. A party opposing a properly-supported motion for summary judgment may not rest upon mere allegations or denials of his pleading, but must set forth specific facts showing the existence of a genuine issue for trial. See Anderson, 106 S.Ct. at 2514-15. If the adverse party does not respond in this manner, summary judgment, if appropriate, “shall be entered against the adverse party.” Fed.R.CivP. 56(e). The nonmov-ant “must adduce admissible evidence which creates a fact issue concerning the existence of every essential component of that party’s case.” Thomas v. Price, 975 F.2d 231, 235 (5th Cir.1992).

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131 F. Supp. 2d 895, 11 Am. Disabilities Cas. (BNA) 1650, 2001 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1629, 80 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 40,448, 2001 WL 137454, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/gray-v-sears-roebuck-co-inc-txsd-2001.