Wilder v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs

175 F. Supp. 3d 82, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 44682, 2016 WL 1322455
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedMarch 31, 2016
DocketNo. 14-cv-10072 (RJS)
StatusPublished
Cited by41 cases

This text of 175 F. Supp. 3d 82 (Wilder v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs) 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
Wilder v. United States Department of Veterans Affairs, 175 F. Supp. 3d 82, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 44682, 2016 WL 1322455 (S.D.N.Y. 2016).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

RICHARD J. SULLIVAN, DISTRICT JUDGE

Plaintiff Tiza Wilder, proceeding pro se, brings this action primarily against (1) her former employer, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (the ‘VA”), alleging discrimination on the basis pf her race and sex in violation of federal, state, and local law, and (2) her former union, the American Federation of Government Employees, AFL-CIO, Local 1151 (the “Union”), alleging breach of the duty of fair representation in violation of federal law. .Now before the Court are Defendants’ motions to dismiss the Complaint for failure to state a claim pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), and for lack of subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1). (Doc. Nos. 35, 48.) For the reasons set forth below, the Court grants Defendants’ motions and dismisses this action, with leave to amend with respect to Plaintiffs discrimination claim against the VA.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff was employed by the VA from March 16, 2008 through April 16, 2013, when she was terminated for allegedly failing to complete the VA’s “Annual Certification of Veteran Status and Veterans Relative” (the “VA Form”) and for failing to follow instructions. (Doc. No. 2 (“Compl.”) at 8; see also Doc. No. 2-18 (“April 10 Letter”).)1 On May 6, 2013, Plaintiff chai-[86]*86Ienged the VA's removal decision and sought reinstatement by filing a grievance complaint alleging an adverse personnel action through the negotiated grievance procedure established under a collective bargaining agreement (the “Collective Bargaining Agreement”) between the Union and the VA. (Doc. No. 2-24 (“Grievance Complaint”).) Thereafter, the VA denied Plaintiffs reinstatement request and, on June 3, 2013, Plaintiff invoked her right under the Collective Bargaining Agreement to have the Union bring her claim against the VA in arbitration. (See Doc. Nos. 2-26-2-28.) On June 11, 2013, after indicating that it would pursue her claim in arbitration, the Union did an about-face, informing Plaintiff that it would not be submitting her claims to arbitration on her behalf, and advising her that if she still wished to pursue arbitration against the VA, she must do so at her own expense. (Doc. No. 2-30.) On June 19, 2013, two days after the Union confirmed that it was closing her Grievance Complaint, Plaintiff appealed the denial of her Grievance Complaint to the Merit Systems Protection Board (“MSPB”). (Doc. No. 2-32.) On July 17, 2013, apparently at the MSPB’s request, Plaintiff submitted two letters to the MSPB explaining why Plaintiff failed to timely file an appeal. (See id.) At some point, the MSPB dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction (see Compl. at 17; see also Doc. No. 39 at 2 n.2), although the timing and the specific basis for the dismissal remains unclear.

Thereafter, in July 2014, Plaintiff filed an administrative complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”), alleging that the VA had discriminated against her on the basis of her sex and terminated her under “false pretenses.” (See Compl. at 3.) On September 10, 2014, Plaintiff received a right to sue letter from the EEOC, and on December 2, 2014 (id. at 3-7), Plaintiff initiated this action by filing a standard-form employment discrimination complaint, along with thirty-nine exhibits attached thereto (collectively, the “Complaint”). (Doc. Nos. 2 and 2-1 — 2-39.)

In addition to the VA and the Union, the Complaint also names as Defendants numerous individual VA employees, including Doretha Turner, Joseph Corretjer, George Seper, Ira Tasman, Jivan Ji Kaur Soverall, Bruce Weston, Ana Davis, Michael Bra-nam, and Arlyn De La Rosa (collectively, with the VA, the “VA Defendants”); the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) and DHS security officers assigned to the VA building where Plaintiff worked (collectively, the “DHS Defendants,” and with the VA Defendants, the “Federal Defendants”); and the Union and its former president, Anthony Jones (“Defendant Jones”) (collectively, the “Union Defendants,” and with the Federal Defendants, “Defendants”). In essence, the Complaint alleges that the VA Defendants discriminated against Plaintiff on the basis of her race and sex in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and New York State and City law (Doc. No. 2 at 1-3), and that the Union failed to adequately represent her in the negotiated grievance procedure and arbitration process in violation of the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978 (the “CSRA”).

On July 22, 2015 and August 14, 2015, Defendants filed their motions to dismiss the Complaint for failure to state a claim pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), and for lack of subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(1). (Doc. Nos. 35, [87]*8748.) These motions were fully briefed as of September 15, 2015. (See Doc. Nos. 36, 45, 49, 52, 54, and 56.)

II. Legal Standaeds

In ruling on a motion to dismiss pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), a court must accept as true all factual allegations in the complaint and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the plaintiff. ATSI Commc’ns, Inc. v. Shaar Fund, Ltd., 493 F.3d 87, 98 (2d Cir.2007). To survive a Rule 12(b)(6) motion, a complaint must allege “enough facts to state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.” Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007). “A claim has facial plausibility where the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). By contrast, a pleading that only “offers ‘labels and conclusions’ or ‘a formulaic recitation of the elements of a cause of action will not do.’ ” Id. (quoting Twombly, 550 U.S. at 555, 127 S.Ct. 1955). If a plaintiff “ha[s] not nudged [her] claims across the line from conceivable to plausible, [her] complaint must be dismissed.” Twombly, 550 U.S. at 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955.

Moreover, in determining whether to dismiss a pro se complaint, a district court must construe the “pro se complaintf ] ... liberally, accepting all factual allegations in the complaint as true, and drawing all reasonable inferences in the plaintiffs favor.” Jackson v. County of Rockland, 450 Fed.Appx. 15, 18 (2d Cir.2011) (citing Triestman v. Fed. Bureau of Prisons, 470 F.3d 471, 474 (2d Cir.2006)). However, although pro se

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
175 F. Supp. 3d 82, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 44682, 2016 WL 1322455, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wilder-v-united-states-department-of-veterans-affairs-nysd-2016.