Weissman v. Congregation Shaare Emeth

839 F. Supp. 680, 1993 WL 532612
District Court, E.D. Missouri·Decided December 22, 1993·No. 4:92CV00199 GFG (CDP)·Published·Cited by 8 cases

Opinion

839 F.Supp. 680 (1993)

Sidney WEISSMAN, Plaintiff,
v.
CONGREGATION SHAARE EMETH and Joy Liss, in her capacity as President, Congregation Shaare Emeth, Defendants.

No. 4:92CV00199 GFG (CDP).

United States District Court, E.D. Missouri, E.D.

December 22, 1993.

*681 Michael J. Hoare, Michael J. Hoare, P.C., St. Louis, MO, for plaintiff.

Joseph H. Mueller, Moser and Marsalek and Charles A. Werner, Schuchat and Cook, St. Louis, MO, for defendants.

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

PERRY, United States Magistrate Judge.

This matter is before the Court on plaintiff's motion for reconsideration, as supplemented on November 8, 1993. This case was referred to the undersigned for trial and all other purposes with consent of the parties pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c).

Plaintiff was employed by the defendant Congregation Shaare Emeth (hereinafter referred to as the "Temple") as the temple administrator. After he was discharged from that position, he brought this claim alleging employment discrimination on account of his age in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq., and on account of his sex in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e, et seq. On June 9, 1993, the undersigned granted defendants' motion for partial summary judgment on plaintiff's ADEA claim, holding that the ADEA does not apply to claims against a religious institution such as defendant. See Weissman v. Congregation Shaare Emeth, 823 F.Supp. 1483 (E.D.Mo.1993). The Title VII claims are set for non-jury trial on January 11, 1994. Plaintiff has now asked the Court to vacate the June 9, 1993 decision because, plaintiff argues, his duties were secular, rather than religious, in nature.

The question before this Court is whether the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq. applies to religious institutions at all. All courts considering this issue have applied the analysis set forth in NLRB v. Catholic Bishop, 440 U.S. 490, 99 S.Ct. 1313, 59 L.Ed.2d 533 (1979), to answer the question. The test established by that decision is that if the exercise of jurisdiction "would give rise to serious constitutional questions," a court should find such jurisdiction only if there was a "clear expression of an affirmative intention of Congress that the subject employees at a religious institution should be covered by the act in question. 440 U.S. at 501, 99 S.Ct. at 1319.

Under the Catholic Bishop analysis, therefore, the first question to be decided is whether applying the ADEA to defendant in this case "gives rise to serious constitutional questions." 440 U.S. at 501, 99 S.Ct. at 1319. Plaintiff contends that since his job was "purely secular," and because he was fired for "strictly secular" reasons, applying the ADEA to defendant would not infringe upon the first amendment. As the undersigned noted previously, "it is not necessary to determine the precise nature of [plaintiff's] duties, however, because the inquiry required by Catholic Bishop is the `narrow' one required to determine whether the application of the ADEA to the religious institution `presents a significant risk that the First Amendment will be infringed,' not whether application of the ADEA would actually violate the First Amendment. 440 U.S. at 502, 99 S.Ct. at 1319." Weissman, 823 F.Supp. at 1486.

In the case at hand there was considerable evidence presented on the motion for summary judgment that plaintiffs job had both religious and secular components. The job description of Temple Administrator was provided to the Court in support of defendant's motion for partial summary judgment, and it cast plaintiff's secular duties in a religious light. Among plaintiff's duties, for instance, was that of "implementing Temple policies." Plaintiff was also responsible for providing the "initial point of contact with prospective and present members, interpreting for them the programs of the Temple and advantages of affiliation ..." Plaintiff also coordinated and maintained the Temple calendar of events, and was responsible for public relations. Plaintiff was also the "business manager" for the Temple. The job description also required the administrator to *682 "have a positive attitude towards Jewish life and a Jewish background, enabling the administrator to understand the work of the Temple, its purposes and highest ideals and goals."

Plaintiff has now supplied an affidavit explaining his job was secular and not religious in nature. The undersigned held a hearing on plaintiff's motion to reconsider on December 14, 1993, to allow plaintiff to fully and completely amplify his position, and to allow defendant to respond. Defendant responded that plaintiff's duties were not "purely secular" and plaintiff was not fired for "strictly secular" reasons. Defendant cited its response to interrogatory No. 1 in support of this position. Through interrogatory No. 1 plaintiff sought the putative reasons for his termination, and defendant responded, among other reasons, that plaintiff was "not properly performing [the] position as Administrative Director of the Temple." Defendant's attorney argued at the hearing that in order for plaintiff to "properly exercise his duties it would involve religious duties." Defendant argues, further, that plaintiff admitted, by way of omission on his affidavit, that he did not fully perform his religious duties.

Plaintiff's arguments and affidavit totally ignore that portion of his job description that requires that he "have a positive attitude towards Jewish life and a Jewish background, enabling the administrator to understand the work of the Temple, its purpose and highest ideals and goals." (Job Qualifications, ¶ 5.) While plaintiff might argue that this paragraph should not be taken out of context, and it must be read in light of his other job qualifications (which include such requirements as the Temple administrator must "be a team member" with "excellent people skills" etc.) the undersigned finds that paragraph five tilts the scales in favor of defendant. If, as defendant has argued, plaintiff was not properly performing the position of Temple Administrator, and because every aspect of plaintiff's job description includes the religious element set out in paragraph five, there is the risk that this case would infringe on the first amendment by requiring this Court to inquire into whether plaintiff understood "the work of the Temple, its purposes and highest ideals and goals," as he went about performing his duties. This case, accordingly, "gives rise to serious constitutional questions." See Catholic Bishop, 440 U.S. at 501, 99 S.Ct. at 1319. Once again, it is the risk of infringement which forms the basis for this Court's decision. See id. at 502, 99 S.Ct. at 1319.

Having identified the existence of a "serious constitutional question" the Court next must ascertain whether Congress has provided a "clear expression of an affirmative intention" that the ADEA apply to religious institutions. See Catholic Bishop, 440 U.S. at 501, 99 S.Ct. at 1319.

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Weissman v. Congregation Shaare Emeth, 839 F. Supp. 680, 1993 WL 532612 (E.D. Mo. 1993).

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