Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-cand-3_03-cv-02659/USCOURTS-cand-3_03-cv-02659-15/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 442
Nature of Suit: Civil Rights Employment
Cause of Action: 28:1332 Diversity-Employment Discrimination

---

United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28 1

 The letter briefs are found at Docket Nos. 399 and 400. 

United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

DERRICK SATCHELL, et. al.,

Plaintiffs,

 v.

FEDEX CORPORATION,

Defendant. /

No. C 03-02659 SI; C 03-2878 SI

ORDER RE: DISCOVERY

By letter briefs, the parties seek resolution of a discovery dispute regarding the production of

the names of non-class member employees, whose personnel and payroll data has already been produced

by defendant FedEx Corporation (“FedEx”).1

 

By order filed on November 21, 2005, this Court ordered FedEx to produce “complete computerreadable personnel and payroll data for employees in FedEx’s Western Region from January 1, 1997

to December 31, 1998, regardless of the employees’ termination date, by December 22, 2005.” Order

Re: Discovery at 2:2-4 (Docket No. 378). In doing so, the Court agreed with plaintiffs’ assertion that

such information could be relevant as circumstantial evidence of a pattern and practice of discrimination

by FedEx, and was also needed to respond to FedEx’s challenge to plaintiffs’ statistician on the basis

that his analysis was incomplete because it only examined data concerning class members. Id. at 1:18-

22. 

The data produced by FedEx in response to this order contains employee identification numbers,

but does not contain employee names. Plaintiffs assert that FedEx should have to produce the names

Case 3:03-cv-02659-SI Document 401 Filed 03/14/06 Page 1 of 2
United States District Court

For the Northern District of California

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

11

12

13

14

15

16

17

18

19

20

21

22

23

24

25

26

27

28

2

as well since the order refers to “complete” personnel and payroll data, and that this information is

necessary for them to be able to identify specific white comparators to show individual cases of

disparate treatment to supplement their statistical analysis. Defendant responds that the word

“complete” was not intended by the Court to include names, that this information is private, and that

plaintiffs can trace the employment histories of non-class member employees and determine which are

true comparators without knowing their names. FedEx asserts that it will accept employee identification

numbers in any requests to depose non-class member employees, and that plaintiffs are in any case able

to interview class members regarding the identities of non-class members believed by the class members

to have been treated more favorably because of race. 

The Court agrees with plaintiffs that any reasonable interpretation of the words “complete

computer-readable personnel and payroll data for employees” encompasses employee names.

Furthermore, when plaintiffs’ counsel interviews class members regarding potential comparators, class

members will be responding with names, not employee identification numbers. If the personnel data

does not include names, plaintiffs will be unable to efficiently determine whether the employees

suggested by class members are appropriate comparators. FedEx has the complete database, giving it

an advantage in vetting the claims of particular class members. Accordingly, the Court GRANTS

plaintiffs’ request. Defendant shall produce a list, in computer-readable form, of employee names and

corresponding employee identification numbers for all non-class member employees referenced in the

personnel and payroll data previously produced by FedEx in response to this Court’s November 21,

2005 discovery order by March 20, 2006.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

Dated: March 13, 2006

 

SUSAN ILLSTON

United States District Judge

Case 3:03-cv-02659-SI Document 401 Filed 03/14/06 Page 2 of 2