Stewart v. International Ass'n of Machinists & Aerospace Workers

16 F. Supp. 3d 783, 2014 WL 1681565, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 58411
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Texas
DecidedApril 28, 2014
DocketCivil Action No. H-13-1391
StatusPublished
Cited by3 cases

This text of 16 F. Supp. 3d 783 (Stewart v. International Ass'n of Machinists & Aerospace Workers) 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
Stewart v. International Ass'n of Machinists & Aerospace Workers, 16 F. Supp. 3d 783, 2014 WL 1681565, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 58411 (S.D. Tex. 2014).

Opinion

ORDER ADOPTING MAGISTRATE JUDGE’S MEMORANDUM AND RECOMMENDATION

SIM LAKE, District Judge.

Having reviewed the Magistrate Judge’s Memorandum and Recommendation dated April 10, 2014,1 the court is of the opinion that said Memorandum and Recommendation should be adopted by this court.

It is, therefore, ORDERED that the Memorandum and Recommendation is hereby ADOPTED by this court.

The Clerk shall send copies of this Order to the respective parties.

MEMORANDUM AND RECOMMENDATION

NANCY K. JOHNSON, United States Magistrate Judge.

Pending before the court1 are Plaintiffs Motion to Dismiss Counterclaims (Doc. 18), Counter-Defendant Don E. Hall’s Motion to Dismiss (Doc. 24), and Defendants’ Motion to Dismiss Title VII Retaliation Claim (Doc. 59). The court has considered the motions, the responses, all other relevant filings, and the applicable law. For the reasons set forth below, the court RECOMMENDS that the motions be DENIED.

I. Case Background

Terry Stewart (“Stewart”) filed this employment action against his union, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (“LAM”), and District [788]*788Lodge 19 (“District 19”) of the IAM2 alleging discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 19643 (“Title VIP) and 42 U.S.C. § 1981.

A. Factual Background

Stewart, an African-American man, works as a machinist for the Union Pacific Railroad (“Union Pacific”) in Houston, Texas, and is represented for collective bargaining purposes by the IAM.4 In March 2005, Stewart was appointed to the position of Assistant Local Chairman of Local Lodge 2198 (“Lodge 2198”), a subordinate body of the IAM.5 Lodge 2198 is a subdivision of District 19.6 District 19 is not a district in a geographical sense; rather, its membership is comprised of IAM members employed in the rail industry.7

In December 2006, Stewart was elected to the position of Lodge 2198 Local Chairman, to which he was reelected in December 2009.8 As Local Chairman, Stewart’s responsibilities included working with the District 19 General Chairman to enforce the collective bargaining agreement by filing claims and grievances, distributing overtime, and settling disputes.9 In July 2010, Stewart submitted a letter to Joe Duncan (“Duncan”), then District 19 President, expressing his interest in serving as General Chairman of the district.10 As President, Duncan was responsible for recommending a candidate for the General Chairman position to the District 19 Executive Board.11 Don Hall (“Hall”), the outgoing General Chairman, recommended to Duncan that Stewart be chosen as his replacement.12 In September 2011, Jim Davis (“Davis”), who is Caucasian, was selected for the position on Duncan’s recommendation.13

On October 17, 2011, Stewart wrote a letter to the IAM President complaining that Duncan’s selection of Davis was the result of racial discrimination.14 An investigation into the complaint found no evidence that Duncan’s recommendation was racially motivated.15 Stewart was advised of the results of this investigation in early December 2011.16 On December 29, 2011, Stewart filed a charge of race discrimination against District 19 with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”).17

In November 2011, Duncan announced that he had received complaints against Stewart and called for an investigation into [789]*789the allegations.18 At the conclusion of an initial investigation, two IAM officials found in Stewart’s favor.19 In February 2012, Duncan assigned another IAM official, Jeff Doerr (“Doerr”), to investigate the complaints further.20 Doerr concluded that Stewart had maintained a patronage scheme in contravention of IAM’s constitution.21 On April 4, 2012, internal union charges were filed against Stewart.22 On the basis of these charges, Duncan removed Stewart from his position as Local Chairman.23

The IAM appointed a Trial Committee, which, after conducting a preliminary hearing in July 2012, determined that sufficient evidence existed to warrant a formal trial.24 The IAM issued a decision on September 23, 2013, finding Stewart guilty of seven charges of misconduct and disqualifying him from office for five years.25

While Stewart’s EEOC charge was pending, he informed the EEOC about IAM’s charges against him, as he believed they were retaliatory.26 Later, on August 12, 2013, Stewart filed an amendment to his EEOC charge, alleging that Duncan had initiated the investigation against him in retaliation for complaining about Duncan’s alleged racial motivations behind recommending Davis for the General Chairman position and that the subsequent trial was conducted unfairly.27

B. Procedural Background

Stewart filed this lawsuit on May 13, 2013.28 On August 13, 2013, the Union filed a counterclaim, alleging violations of Section 501 of the Labor-Management and Reporting Disclosure Act of 1959 (“LMRDA” or “Act”), 29 U.S.C. § 501 (“Section 501”), which establishes fiduciary duties owed by a labor organization’s officers to the organization and its members, and civil conspiracy against Stewart and Hall, as well as state-law claims of breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, money had and received, tortious interference with the performance of an existing contractual relationship,, and fraud against Stewart.29

On September 3, 2013, Stewart filed a motion to dismiss the Union’s counterclaims.30 The Union responded on September 24, 2013, and Stewart filed a reply on October 15, 2013.31 On October 14, 2013, Hall filed a motion to dismiss the Union’s counterclaims against him, to which the Union responded on November 4, 2013.32 On December 20, 2013, the Union filed a motion to dismiss Stewart’s [790]*790retaliation claim under Title VII, to which Stewart responded on January 9, 2014.33 The Union filed a reply on January 31, 2014, and Stewart filed a surreply on February 3, 2014.34

II. Stewart and Hall’s Motions to Dismiss

Stewart and Hall both move to dismiss the Union’s claim under 29 U.S.C. § 501

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Bluebook (online)
16 F. Supp. 3d 783, 2014 WL 1681565, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 58411, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/stewart-v-international-assn-of-machinists-aerospace-workers-txsd-2014.