Patterson v. Raymours Furniture Co.

96 F. Supp. 3d 71, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 40162, 2015 WL 1433219
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedMarch 27, 2015
DocketNo. 14-CV-5882 (VEC)
StatusPublished
Cited by42 cases

This text of 96 F. Supp. 3d 71 (Patterson v. Raymours Furniture Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Patterson v. Raymours Furniture Co., 96 F. Supp. 3d 71, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 40162, 2015 WL 1433219 (S.D.N.Y. 2015).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

VALERIE CAPRONI, District Judge:

Plaintiff brings this putative collective and class action against her former employer for alleged violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) and the New York Labor Law (“NYLL”). Defen[74]*74dant moved to compel arbitration pursuant to an arbitration clause contained in its employee handbook. For the reasons stated below, Defendant’s motion is GRANTED.

BACKGROUND

Defendant is a furniture retailer that operates stores in multiple states, including New York. Compl. ¶ 2; McPeak Deck ¶ 4. Plaintiff worked as a Sales Associate from June 20, 2005, to February 2, 2014, the date on which she was terminated. Compl. ¶ 17; McPeak Decl. ¶¶ 5, 11, Ex. 1. Plaintiff claims that Defendant misclassified all of its Sales Associates as exempt from the overtime provisions of the FLSA and NYLL. Compl. ¶ 5. As a result, Defendant failed to pay them overtime wages for all the hours worked in excess pf forty hours per week in violation of both statutes. Id. ¶1( 78, 87.1

When Plaintiff was hired, Defendant provided her with a copy of its Associate Handbook (“Handbook”). McPeak Deck ¶5. Plaintiff signed an acknowledgment form stating that she understood the Handbook’s contents to be “applicable to the position” for which she had been hired. McPeak Deck Ex. 1. The form stated that the Handbook’s contents were “not promissory or contractual in nature” and that Plaintiffs employment was “not for any stated period.” Id. In October 2009, Defendant updated its Handbook and distributed copies to all employees. McPeak Deck ¶ 6. Plaintiff acknowledged that her continued employment would constitute her agreement to the 2009 changes and all future changes made to the Handbook. McPeak Deck Ex. 2. The 2009 acknowledgment form stated that “nothing in the Handbook constitutes a contract or promise of continued employment,” that Plaintiffs employment was “at will” and that the parties had not “entered into an employment agreement for a specified period of time.” Id.

In February 2012, Defendant issued a revised version of its Handbook, which, for the first time, included the Employment Arbitration Program (“EAP”). McPeak Deck ¶ 12, Ex. 6. Defendant notified its employees by email and required them to acknowledge that they had reviewed the updated Handbook. McPeak Deck ¶ 13, Exs. 7, 8. Plaintiff did so. McPeak Deck Ex. 9. Defendant amended its Handbook one more time in April 2013 and again emailed its employees and required them to acknowledge the updates. McPeak Deck ¶ 18, Ex. 11. Plaintiff electronically acknowledged her review of the Handbook. McPeak Deck Ex. 12.

Page five of the 2013 version of the Handbook declares: “THIS HANDBOOK IS NOT A CONTRACT OF EMPLOYMENT. All Associates of the Company are employed on an ‘at will’ basis.” McPeak Deck Ex. 10 at 5 (emphasis in original). It goes on to state that the Handbook “is intended for informational purposes only” and that nothing in it “creates a promise of continued employment, employment contract, term or obligation of any kind on the part of the Company.” Id. (emphasis in original). On the same page, the document states that “[c]ontinuing employment after the issuance of this Handbook (or any subsequent revision) constitutes the associate’s agreement to rules, policies, practices and procedures contained herein.” Id.

The Handbook describes the EAP as “an essential element of your continued employment relationship” and “a condition of your employment.” Id. at 58 (emphasis in original). It also provides that the EAP “is not a contract of employment and does not change your status as an at-will employee.” Id. [75]*75(emphasis in original). Under the EAP, employees are required to arbitrate “any employment-related or compensation-related claims ... that in any. way arise from or relate to your employment with us ... and that are based upon a legally protected right.” Id. at 59 (emphasis in original). The EAP defines “legally protected right” to include rights arising under the “the federal Fair Labor Standards Act or any state wage and hour laws.” Id. Finally, the program has a class action waiver:

Claims under this Program cannot be litigated by way of class or collective action. Nor may Claims be arbitrated by way of a class or collective action. All Claims between you and us must be decided individually. This means that, notwithstanding any other provision of this Program, if you ... elect to arbitrate a Claim, ... you ... will [not] have the right ... to ... obtain relief from a class action....

Id. at 66 (emphasis in original).

Defendant moves to compel arbitration based on the company’s EAP.

DISCUSSION

In deciding a motion to compel arbitration under the Federal Arbitration Act (“FAA”), 29 U.S.C. §§ 3 and 4, the Court “applies a standard similar to that applicable for a motion for summary judgment.” Bensadoun v. Jobe-Riat, 316 F.3d 171, 175 (2d Cir.2003) (citations omitted). A motion to compel arbitration may be granted “when the pleadings, the discovery and disclosure materials on file, and any affidavits show that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.” Thomas v. Pub. Storage, Inc., 957 F.Supp.2d 496, 499 (S.D.N.Y.2013) (citations and internal quotation marks omitted). “All facts, inferences, and ambiguities must be viewed in a light most favorable to the nonmovant.” Alexander & Alexander Servs., Inc. v. These Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, London, 136 F.3d 82, 86 (2d Cir.1998) (citing Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio Corp., 475 U.S. 574, 587, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986)). If the Court determines “that an arbitration agreement is valid and the claim before it is arbitrable, it must stay or dismiss further judicial proceedings and order the parties to arbitrate.” Nunez v. Citibank, N.A., No. 08-CV-5398 (BSJ), 2009 WL 256107, *2 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 3, 2009) (citations omitted).

I. The FAA Mandates Arbitration of Plaintiffs Claims

The FAA was designed to “ensure judicial enforcement of privately made agreements to arbitrate.” Dean Witter Reynolds, Inc. v. Byrd, 470 U.S. 213, 219, 105 S.Ct. 1238, 84 L.Ed.2d 158 (1985). Under the FAA, a written agreement to arbitrate “shall be valid, irrevocable, and enforceable, save upon such grounds as exist at law or in equity for the revocation of any contract.” 9 U.S.C. § 2. This section manifests “a liberal federal policy favoring arbitration agreements.” Moses H. Cone Mem. Hosp. v. Mercury Constr. Corp., 460 U.S. 1, 24, 103 S.Ct. 927, 74 L.Ed.2d 765 (1983).

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96 F. Supp. 3d 71, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 40162, 2015 WL 1433219, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/patterson-v-raymours-furniture-co-nysd-2015.