Thomas Publishing Co. v. Division of Human Rights

456 F. Supp. 1104, 1978 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15466, 18 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 8829
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedSeptember 19, 1978
DocketNo. 77 Civ. 3290
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 456 F. Supp. 1104 (Thomas Publishing Co. v. Division of Human Rights) 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
Thomas Publishing Co. v. Division of Human Rights, 456 F. Supp. 1104, 1978 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15466, 18 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 8829 (S.D.N.Y. 1978).

Opinion

PIERCE, District Judge.

OPINION AND ORDER

The plaintiff, Thomas Publishing Company, initiated an action for an order declaring that the New York Human Rights Law, N.Y.Exec.Law § 290 et seq. (McKinney 1972 & Supp.), is not enforceable and is a nullity because it is in direct conflict with and subordinate to the provisions of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., and for injunctive relief against the defendants, New York State Division of Human Rights and its Regional Director, to prevent their enforcement of the Human Rights Law against the plaintiff. The plaintiff has here moved under Fed.R.Civ.P. 56 for summary judgment. For the reasons that follow the Court denies the plaintiff’s motion and grants the summary judgment to the defendants.

FACTS

The parties have agreed, and this Court finds, that no material issues of fact are [1106]*1106present which would bar the resolution of this motion.1 The pertinent facts involved in this application are as follows.

Plaintiff is a publishing company located in New York City. Its employment practices, so far as issues involving discrimination are concerned, are subject to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., as amended, and the New York Human Rights Law, N.Y.Exec.Law § 290 et seq. It has an employee disability program in effect under which benefits are paid for disabilities caused by accidental injury, disease or illness. However, disabilities caused by or arising in connection with pregnancy are not included.

The defendant Human Rights Division helped an employee of plaintiff, Carmetta J. Anderson, prepare and file a complaint with the defendant Division against the plaintiff asserting that the exclusion of pregnancy-related disability benefits constitutes illegal gender discrimination under the state Human Rights Law. The disability forming the basis of Ms. Anderson’s complaint commenced on October 2, 1976 and terminated on March 1, 1977. On June 14, 1977, the defendants wrote to the plaintiff stating in effect that if the plaintiff did not agree to concede Ms. Anderson’s claim, the defendants would hold an expedited hearing on the matter. A second claim against the plaintiff involving similar incidences is also currently pending.

DISCUSSION

Section 703(a)(1) of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 provides that it is unlawful for an employer to discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of sex, among other characteristics. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(1) (1970). The Supreme Court in General Electric Co. v. Gilbert, 429 U.S. 125, 97 S.Ct. 401, 50 L.Ed.2d 343 (1976), stated, however, that “an exclusion of pregnancy from a disability benefits plan, providing general coverage is not gender-based discrimination at all.” Id. at 136, 97 S.Ct. at 408. Only if a plaintiff can show that the exclusion of pregnancy from the plan is a ploy designed to circumvent the statutory prohibitions against sex discrimination and to effectuate invidious discrimination can relief be obtained under Title VII. Id. at 137, 97 S.Ct. 401, see generally 45 Fordham L.Rev. 1202 (1977).

In contrast, the New York Human Rights Law bars the exclusion of pregnancy-related benefits from a general employee disability plan as sex discrimination. In Brooklyn Union Gas Co. v. New York State Human Rights Appeal Board, 41 N.Y.2d 84, 390 N.Y.S.2d 884, 359 N.E.2d 393 (1976), which was decided approximately two weeks after General Electric Co. was decided, the New York Court of Appeals construed the New York Human Rights Law as prohibiting any employment personnel policy which singles out pregnancy and childbirth for treatment different from that other physical or medical impairment or disability. Thus, the plaintiff’s disability plan is not discriminatory under the federal Civil Rights Act, but is discriminatory under and violative of the New York Human Rights Law.

The plaintiff’s principal contention2 is that since Title VII of the Act was enacted pursuant to the Commerce Clause in Article 1 of the U.S. Constitution, the New York Human Rights Law is a nullity under the Supremacy Clause of Article 6 of the U.S. Constitution insofar as the state law is in conflict with Title VII. Gibbons v. Ogden, 22 U.S. 1, 6 L.Ed. 23 (1824); Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Ry. v. Hefley, 158 U.S. 98, 15 S.Ct. 802, 39 L.Ed. 910 (1895). The essence of the plaintiff’s argument is that since the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the deni[1107]*1107al of pregnancy-related benefits is not discriminatory under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, no state may adopt laws which bar the exclusion of pregnancy benefits as sex discriminatory. On the other hand, the defendants argue that the plain language of the Civil Rights Act indicates that the states may prohibit practices which the Act permits. 42 U.S.C. §§ 2000e-7, 2000h-4 (1970). Therefore, defendants contend, the Human Rights Law may prohibit employers from excluding pregnancy benefits from coverage although it has been determined that Title VII does not prohibit such practices. The Court agrees. It is clear from a reading of the Supreme Court’s decision in General Electric Co. v. Gilbert, 429 U.S. 125, 97 S.Ct. 401, 50 L.Ed.2d 343 (1976) and the Act that the plaintiff’s argument must fail.

In General Electric Co., the Supreme Court was presented with the issue of whether or not under Title VII an employer may exclude pregnancy benefits from employee disability benefit programs. The Court reasoned that because the Act did not define “discrimination” as used in the Act, pregnancy exclusion did not per se constitute sex discrimination. Rather, the test of sex discrimination set forth in Geduldig v. Aiello, 417 U.S. 484, 94 S.Ct. 2485, 41 L.Ed.2d 256 (1974), had to be applied to the facts of that case. Id., 429 U.S. at 133, 97 S.Ct. 401. The Court found upon applying that test that no discrimination had been established. However, the Court did not hold that pregnancy exclusion could not be sex discrimination or that the states are precluded from adopting laws to the effect that such exclusion is per se sex discrimination.

Furthermore, section 708 of Title VII, 42 U.S.C.

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456 F. Supp. 1104, 1978 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 15466, 18 Empl. Prac. Dec. (CCH) 8829, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/thomas-publishing-co-v-division-of-human-rights-nysd-1978.