Kiniropoulos v. Northampton County Child Welfare Service

917 F. Supp. 2d 377, 2013 WL 140109, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4934
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedJanuary 11, 2013
DocketCivil Action No. 11-6593
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 917 F. Supp. 2d 377 (Kiniropoulos v. Northampton County Child Welfare Service) 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
Kiniropoulos v. Northampton County Child Welfare Service, 917 F. Supp. 2d 377, 2013 WL 140109, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4934 (E.D. Pa. 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

STENGEL, District Judge.

This motion filed by Defendant, Northampton County Child Welfare Service, seeks to dismiss Plaintiffs Amended Complaint. Plaintiff claims discrimination in the termination of his employment. For the reasons set forth below, I will grant in part and deny in part Defendant’s motion to dismiss.

I. Background

Plaintiffs Amended Complaint states that he was born in Greece. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 22). Plaintiff was employed by the Defendant as a Caseworker from October of 2005 until his termination in October of 2010. (Amend. Compl. ¶3, 20). His employment was governed by a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). (Amend. Compl. ¶ 61). Throughout his employment with the Defendant, Mr. Kiniropoulos received performance evaluation reviews that were satisfactory or commendable. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 5). Plaintiffs immediate supervisor was Ms. Sehienholz (“Schienholz”).

On May 24, 2010, Plaintiff told his supervisor that he sustained a significant injury to his leg, which would require hi m to walk with a cane.1 (Amend. Compl. ¶¶7-8, 30). As a result of his injury, [382]*382Plaintiff was ordered by his doctor to limit any activity with the injured leg.2 (Amend. Compl. ¶ 9). The next day he informed the supervisor that he had difficulty walking and could not perform his three (3) scheduled court hearings on May 26, 2010. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 11). The County offered to provide transportation to the scheduled hearings.3 (Amend. Compl. ¶ 12). After that date, however, Plaintiff emailed Defendant on June 2, 2010, regarding his medical condition and his inability to work.4 (Amend. Compl. ¶ 13). Defendant never responded to the e-mail. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 14).

On June 10, 2012, Plaintiff contacted Gary Ruschman (“Ruschman”), the Defendant’s Director, regarding Plaintiffs medical health and his need for medical leave under the FMLA.5 (Amend. Compl. ¶ 15). The following day, June 22, 2010, Rusehman informed Plaintiff that there was an issue with the Plaintiff work documentation, notably several alleged infractions and alleged misconduct regarding the Plaintiffs cases. (Amend. Compl. ¶¶ 16-17). Plaintiff was suspended on June 14, 2010, without pay and told to contact his Union Representative with any questions. (Amend. Compl. ¶¶ 18-19).

Plaintiff was terminated on October 20, 2010. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 20). On November 23, 2010, Plaintiff filed Charges of Discrimination with the EEOC and PHRC and was issued a right to sue letter. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 26). Plaintiff alleges that Defendant regarded him as being disabled and violated the ADA and PHRA based on Defendant’s believe that Plaintiff suffered from a disability. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 39). Plaintiff also alleges that Defendant discriminated against Plaintiff on the basis of his national origin and treated him differently from those employees born in the United States. (Amend. Compl. ¶ 39). Plaintiff also alleges that Defendant took an adverse employment action against him for requesting Family Medical Leave Act (“FMLA”) leave and interfered with his right to take FMLA leave. Finally, Plaintiff argues that his termination violated procedural due process because he was not provided proper representation or a hearing.

II. Procedural History

Plaintiff initiated this action by filing a six-count Complaint, against Northampton County Child Welfare Service on October 21, 2011. Following Defendant’s first motion to dismiss (Doc. No. 7), Plaintiff filed an Amended Complaint on April 11, 2012. (Doc. No. 9). The Amended Complaint alleges the Defendant unlawfully terminated his employment in violation of the following laws: Count I: Violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq.; Count II: Violation of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act (PHRA), 43 P.S. § 951 et seq.; Count III: Violation of Federal Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq.; Count IV: Violation of the Family Medical Leave Act [383]*383(FMLA) — Retaliation, 29 U.S.C. § 2615; Count V: Violations of Procedural Due Process, 42 U.S.C. § 1983. On April 30, 2012, Defendant filed a Motion to Dismiss in response to Plaintiffs Amended Complaint. (Doc. No. 13). Plaintiff then filed a motion in opposition on May 29, 2012 (Doc. No. 15), and Defendant filed a reply on June 12, 2012. (Doc. No. 16).

III. Standard of Review

A motion to dismiss under Rule 12(b)(6) examines the legal sufficiency of the complaint. Conley v. Gibson, 355 U.S. 41, 45—46, 78 S.Ct. 99, 2 L.Ed.2d 80 (1957). The factual allegations must be sufficient to make the claim for relief more than just speculative. Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). Pursuant to Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009), my inquiry is two-fold: “First, the factual and legal elements of a claim should be separated. [I] must accept all of the complaint’s well-pleaded facts as true, but may disregard any legal conclusions. Second, [I] must then determine whether the facts alleged in the complaint are sufficient to show that the plaintiff has a ‘plausible claim for relief.’ ” Fowler v. UPMC Shadyside, 578 F.3d 203, 210-11 (3d Cir.2009) (quoting Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 679, 129 S.Ct. 1937).6

In deciding a motion to dismiss, courts generally consider only the allegations contained in the complaint, any exhibits attached to the complaint, and matters of public record. Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. v. White, 998 F.2d 1192, 1196 (3d Cir.1993). However, “a court may consider a document that is ‘integral to or explicitly relied upon in the complaint’ without converting the motion to dismiss into one for summary judgment.” In re Burlington Coat Factory Securities Litigation, 114 F.3d 1410, 1426 (3d Cir.1997). For instance, a court may consider a document attached to a motion to dismiss, provided that its authenticity is undisputed and that plaintiffs claims are based on the document. Rogan v. Giant Eagle, Inc., 113 F.Supp.2d 777, 781 (W.D.Pa.2000) (citing Pension Benefit, 998 F.2d at 1196).

IV. Discussion

A. ADA and PHRA (Counts I and II)7

The ADA8

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Bluebook (online)
917 F. Supp. 2d 377, 2013 WL 140109, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 4934, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kiniropoulos-v-northampton-county-child-welfare-service-paed-2013.