Robinson v. Electro Sales Co.

9 Mass. L. Rptr. 171
CourtMassachusetts Superior Court
DecidedAugust 31, 1998
DocketNo. 974148
StatusPublished

This text of 9 Mass. L. Rptr. 171 (Robinson v. Electro Sales Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Massachusetts Superior Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Robinson v. Electro Sales Co., 9 Mass. L. Rptr. 171 (Mass. Ct. App. 1998).

Opinion

S osman, J.

Plaintiff John Robinson has brought the present action against his former employer alleging handicap discrimination and a violation of G.L.c. 152, §75B. Defendants have moved for summary judgment on the grounds that the handicap discrimination claim is barred due to plaintiffs failure to file a timely administrative complaint and that there is no independent cause of action for handicap discrimination under G.L.c. 152, §75B(1). For the following reasons, defendants’ motion is ALLOWED.

Facts

Robinson began working for defendant Electro Sales Co. (“Electro”) in 1991. Prior to his employment at Electro, Robinson had sustained a job-related back injury which left him partially disabled. Notwithstanding his alleged disability, Robinson worked for Electro for almost five years. His last position at Electro was that of shipper/receiver.

On July 19, 1996, Robinson was fired. The reasons given for his termination were communicated to him orally and then confirmed in a letter from defendant Stewart Berg, the President of Electro. Berg’s letter indicated that Robinson was being fired because of excessive unauthorized leave of absence, arguments with fellow employees, failure to follow supervisors’ instructions, tardiness, failure to abide by company rules, and failure to work a forty-hour week.

On September 27, 1996, Robinson filed a charge of discrimination against Electro with the MCAD. The bases for the alleged unlawful discrimination were listed as “race and color.” The section reciting the factual basis for the claim read as follows:

On 7/19/96, Electro Sales Co., Inc. terminated my employment because of my race and color (black) in violation ofM.G.L.c. 151B, §4(1) and Title VII. On 7/19/96, Stewart Berg, President, called me in the office and told me that I was to be terminated for unauthorized leave of absence, arguments with fellow employees, failure to follow directions, tardiness, failure to work a 40 hour week. I believe that all these reasons are not only pretextual but untrue. To the extent that I argued with any employee, others have engaged in similar behavior with impunity. Even the President argued with the Vice President on a daily basis and once even came to blows and knocked each other to the ground. I’ve never been out on an unauthorized leave or excessively tardy and is comparable to other employees’ records. I was the only black employee in my department and have always been treated differently. I’ve been working there for almost 5 years and believe that I was terminated because I’m black male.

On March 19, 1997, Robinson filed an amendment to his MCAD complaint and a request to remove his complaint so as to pursue a civil action in court. The [172]*172amendment to his complaint added a claim for handicap discrimination based on the following:

Mr. Robinson states that he has had a chronic back problem (severe recurrent back pain) that was caused by a previous on the job injury. This condition was exacerbated by his job at respondent. Respondent failed to reasonably accommodate the disability by giving Robinson time off or light duty. He was discharged due to his medical condition.

On April 11, 1997, the MCAD allowed the amendment to Robinson’s complaint to include his claim of handicap discrimination. On April 25, 1997, the MCAD dismissed the complaint so that Robinson could pursue his private right of action.

On August 11, 1997, plaintiff filed the present action in this court. His complaint alleges that his prior back injury left him with a permanent partial disability, that he was capable of performing the functions of his position at Electro with reasonable accommodation for that disability, that Electro refused to provide reasonable accommodation, and that he was discharged due to Electro’s failure to provide reasonable accommodation. The complaint before this court did not allege any discrimination on account of race.

Discussion

I. G.L.c. 151B

In order to bring an action for employment discrimination under G.L.c. 151B, §9, plaintiff must file an administrative complaint with the MCAD within six months after the alleged act of discrimination. G.L.c. 151B, §§5, 9; Serini v. Star Sportswear Manufacturing Corp., 24 Mass.App.Ct. 428, 430 (1987). In the present case, Robinson filed an administrative complaint within six months of his discharge, but that complaint only alleged race discrimination, not handicap discrimination. His complaint was later amended to add a claim of handicap discrimination, but that amendment was not filed until eight months after his termination. Plaintiff argues that his amendment relates back to the date of his original filing. Defendants contend that the amendment does not relate back because it does not relate to or arise out of the original complaint.

The MCAD’s rules allow for amendments to allege “additional acts constituting unlawful discriminatoiy practices related to or arising out of the subject matter of the original complaint,” with those amendments then relating back to the original filing date. 804 C.M.R. §1.03(5)(a). Where, as here, the MCAD has allowed an amendment, the court is not bound by that administrative ruling but rather may make its own assessment of whether an agency filing was timely and whether any amendments to a timely filing should relate back to the original filing date. Conroy v. Boston Edison Co., 758 F.Sup. 54, 57 n.4 (D.Mass. 1991). Thus, this court may make its own determination of whether Robinson’s March 1997 amendment alleging handicap discrimination should or should not relate back to his September 1996 complaint of race discrimination.

Courts have articulated various ways in which a later amendment can “relate to” or “arise out of’ the charge originally filed. Sometimes the protected categories are themselves related (e.g., race and national origin) such that a complaint of discrimination on the originally identified basis would at least suggest discrimination on the other later asserted basis. Another way in which the two claims may be “related” is that their underlying facts are the same. Courts have also considered, in light of the investigatory and conciliatory purposes underlying the administrative filing requirement, whether the amended claim would reasonably have been uncovered, investigated and potentially conciliated as part of the investigation of the claim as filed. See Conroy, 758 F.Sup. at 58, and cases cited therein.

Claims of discrimination stemming from entirely different bases are not normally viewed as related claims. See Pejic v. Hughes Helicopters, Inc., 840 F.2d 667, 675 (9th Cir. 1988) (amendment adding charge of age discrimination did not relate back to originally filed charge of sex discrimination); EEOC v. Mississippi College, 626 F.2d 477, 483-84 (5th Cir. 1980) (race discrimination claim not related to sex discrimination claim), cert. denied, 453 U.S. 912 (1981); Rizzo v. WGN Continental Broadcasting Co., 601 F.Sup. 132, 135 (N.D. Ill. 1985) (sex discrimination claim did not relate back to earlier filed claim of age discrimination). But see Caldwell v. Federal Express Corp., 908 F.Sup. 29 (D.

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Related

Sereni v. Star Sportswear Manufacturing Corp.
509 N.E.2d 1203 (Massachusetts Appeals Court, 1987)
Carter v. Commissioner of Correction
681 N.E.2d 1255 (Massachusetts Appeals Court, 1997)
Pejic v. Hughes Helicopters, Inc.
840 F.2d 667 (Ninth Circuit, 1988)

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Bluebook (online)
9 Mass. L. Rptr. 171, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/robinson-v-electro-sales-co-masssuperct-1998.