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Employment:
Gender Discrimination
Gender Discrimination
Claim against the City of Chula Vista
| Disposition:
(Settlement/Arbitration/Trial) |
Settlement |
Date: |
6/22/1998 |
Type of Case: |
Employment / Discrimination |
Allegation(s): |
Retaliation for complaint to management |
Result: |
$966,500 |
Case Name: |
Griffin v. City of Chula Vista, et al. |
Facts: |
Plaintiff
worked in the Planning Department at the City
of Chula Vista from January 1972
until he was fired in August of 1996. During
his employment, he advanced from being a Technician
to a Senior Planner. He loved his job, and
in his job performance evaluations he was
consistently rated as "outstanding."
In June or July of 1993, he became romantically
involved with a subordinate in his department
(Jane Doe). In June or July of 1994, the relationship
ended. The plaintiff disclosed the relationship
to his superiors at the City in July of 1994.
Despite the fact that the City subsequently
took the position that the plaintiff "lied"
about the relationship when questioned, a
review of information from that time frame
demonstrated that the accusation that the
plaintiff "lied" was made later as an attempt
to find some legitimate reason to end his
employment.
Because of interim events, Jane Doe eventually
asserted a claim of discrimination against
Defendant City. During the course of the investigation
of Jane Doe's claims, the Plaintiff told the
investigating attorney of another incident
that potentially involved a claim of gender
discrimination which had occurred within the
Planning Department in 1995. The attorney
made no attempts whatsoever to follow up this
issue. The plaintiff then brought it to the
City of Chula Vista. He sent
a memo outlining his concerns to the Assistant
City Manager, Defendant Sid Morris, on July
10, 1996.
The conclusion of the investigation regarding
Jane Doe's discrimination / harassment allegations
was that although many of the acts alleged
by her factually occurred, they did not rise
to the level of harassment. The plaintiff
was completely cleared of any allegations
for which he was originally under investigation.
No discipline of any kind was ever recommended
in regard to the plaintiff.
The City's long-standing policies concerning complaints of gender discrimination, specifically when involving the head of a department, were to retain an outside independent investigator to conduct an investigation and to notify the individual against whom the complaint had been made, in writing, that the charges had been brought. At the time the plaintiff brought his complaint against Mr. Leiter concerning gender discrimination, Mr. Leiter was the head of the Planning Department. The City decided to handle the Plaintiff's complaint "in-house." Instead of an outside investigator, the Assistant Director of Human Resources, Defendant Melody Kessler, was allowed to conduct her own "investigation." Mr Leiter was never advised in writing, as required by their policies, that a complaint of gender discrimination had been made against him. Ms. Kessler concluded that the plaintiff's allegations were "unproven and unfounded." Kessler concluded her investigation on August 15, 1996.
On August 26, 1996, plaintiff delivered a
memo to Kessler expressing his dismay regarding
the "findings" of her investigation. Two days
later, plaintiff was presented with his Advance
Notice of Termination, indicating that he
had been fired by the City of Chula
Vista. This document was authored
by Bob Leiter. Jane Doe was fired from her
job the same day.
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| Injury/Injuries: |
Loss of earnings between $494,237-$531,587. Emotional distress.
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| Contentions: |
Plaintiff claims defendants retaliated against him for protected conduct in making good faith complaints against prohibited employment practices. They committed intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress, statutory violations, tortious discharge and defamation. The plaintiff was fired in retaliation for supporting the discrimination claim of Jane Doe and also the gender discrimination claim of another job applicant at the City of Chula Vista.
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| Special Notes: |
Settlement
was in the form of cash payment plus periodic
payments. Plaintiff is also entitled to
his full retirement benefits.
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