Voisin v. Axxis Drilling, Inc.

141 F. Supp. 3d 670, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 143148, 2015 WL 6438918
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Louisiana
DecidedOctober 21, 2015
DocketCivil Action No. 15-571
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 141 F. Supp. 3d 670 (Voisin v. Axxis Drilling, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Voisin v. Axxis Drilling, Inc., 141 F. Supp. 3d 670, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 143148, 2015 WL 6438918 (E.D. La. 2015).

Opinion

ORDER AND REASONS

MARTIN L.C. FELDMAN, District Judge.

Before the Court is the defendants’ motion for summary judgment. For the reasons that follow, the motion is GRANTED.

Background

This putative class action lawsuit is brought on behalf of a group of Axxis Drilling, Inc.’s former employees who were laid off between December of 2014 and February of 2015 in response to a downturn in oil and gas productivity. ■ The plaintiffs’ claims arise under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988 (the WARN Act), which requires covered employers to give notice to their employees before implementing sub[672]*672stantial layoffs. The plaintiffs claim they did not receive the required notice.

Until February of 2015, Axxis Drilling, Inc. operated a fleet of five floating drilling rigs in the territorial waters of Louisiana and Texas. While the rigs were not self-propelled, they were periodically moved by boat to new drilling sites. Each rig had between 24 and 43 employees. A rig manager supervised the employees on each rig and oversaw daily operations. The rig employees worked rotating shifts of seven days on duty and seven days off duty. While on duty, they worked, ate, slept, and lived on the rig. At the beginning and end of their shifts, rig employees were transported to and from the rig by a boat that traveled between the rig and a designated dock facility. Rig employees were responsible for getting themselves to and from the designated dock and typically drove their personal vehicles between their homes and the dock.

Axxis also employed 20 people at an office located along the Intracoastal Waterway in Houma, Louisiana. The Axxis office handled billings and payments, payroll for all employees, and human resource functions. Axxis hired new personnel and conducted training sessions for all employees at its office. Axxis’ operations manager and superintendent worked out of the office but routinely visited with each rig. The rigs worked independently from each other, but each was in daily communication with the managers at the Axxis office. Each rig produced its own daily and weekly reports, which it relayed to the Axxis office. Rig managers contacted the office personnel when they needed to order parts or have equipment sent to the barges. In short, the office functioned as Axxis’ headquarters for its drilling operations.

Adjacent to Axxis’ office were two warehouses and roughly 300 feet of dock space. Axxis used the warehouses to store supplies and spare parts for the rigs. Occasionally, when the drilling rigs were between jobs, they were “stacked” at the dock adjacent to the Axxis office. At most, two rigs were stacked at a time for repairs and maintenance or to prepare to move to a new location. While they were stacked at the dock, rig employees continued to work their normal shifts, living and sleeping on the rigs. Lester Guilbeau, Axxis’ operations manager, testified that stacked rigs could remain at the dock from two weeks to a month before being moved to a new location. While stacked, rig employees parked at the Axxis office and could walk back and forth from the rig to the office. When Axxis laid off 101 employees in February of 2015, two of the fully-staffed rigs were stacked at the Axxis dock.

I.

Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 56 instructs that summary judgment is proper if the record discloses no genuine dispute as to any material fact such that the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. No genuine dispute of fact exists if the record taken as a whole could not lead a rational trier of fact to find for the non-moving party. See Matsushita Elec. Indus. Co. v. Zenith Radio., 475 U.S. 574, 586, 106 S.Ct. 1348, 89 L.Ed.2d 538 (1986). A genuine dispute of fact exists only “if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the non-moving party.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986).

The Court emphasizes that the mere argued existence of a factual dispute does not defeat an otherwise properly supported motion. See id. Therefore, “[i]f the evidence is merely colorable, or is not significantly probative,” summary judgment is appropriate. Id. at 249-50, 106 S.Ct. 2505 (citations omitted). Summary [673]*673judgment is also proper if the party opposing the motion fails to establish an essential element of his case. See Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322-23, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). In this regard, the non-moving party must do more than simply deny the allegations raised by the moving party. See Donaghey v. Ocean Drilling & Exploration Co., 974 F.2d 646, 649 (5th Cir.1992). Rather, he must come forward with competent evidence, such as affidavits or depositions, to buttress his claim. Id. Hearsay evidence and unsworn documents that cannot be presented in a form that would be admissible in evidence at trial do not qualify as competent opposing evidence. Martin v. John W. Stone Oil Distrib., Inc., 819 F.2d 547, 549 (5th Cir.1987); Fed. R. Civ. F. 56(c)(2). Finally, in evaluating the summary'judgment motion, the Court must read the facts in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505.

H.

The WARN Act requires employers who have 100 or more full-time employees to provide affected employees with a 60-day notice before ordering a plant closing, or a mass layoff. 29 U.S.C. § 2102. The Act defines “plant closing” as the permanent or temporary shutdown of a “single site of employment” that results in 50 or more employees losing employment during any 30-day period. 29 U.S.C. § 2101(a)(2). A “mass layoff’ is a reduction in force which causes 50 or more employees at a “single site of employment,” who comprise at least one third of the total employees at that site, to lose employment for any 30-day period. 29 U.S.C. § 2101(a)(3). An employer who fails to give the required notice is liable to its employees for their average salaries and benefits for each day of violation. 29 U.S.C. § 2104(a)(1). The outcome of this case turns on the meaning of “single site of employment.”

The Act does not define “single site of employment,” but the Department of Labor has adopted regulations that offer guidance. The parties identify the following:

(1) A single site of employment can refer to either a single location or a group-of contiguous locations. Groups of structures which form a campus or industrial park, or separate facilities across the street from one another, may be considered a single site of employment.

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141 F. Supp. 3d 670, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 143148, 2015 WL 6438918, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/voisin-v-axxis-drilling-inc-laed-2015.