Source: http://openjurist.org/133/f3d/1025
Timestamp: 2014-10-20 13:10:55
Document Index: 794746377

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 2000', '§ 1981', '§ 2000', '§ 2000', '§ 1981', '§ 2000']

133 F3d 1025 Gonzalez v. Ingersoll Milling Machine Company | OpenJurist
133 F. 3d 1025 - Gonzalez v. Ingersoll Milling Machine Company	Home133 f3d 1025 gonzalez v. ingersoll milling machine company
133 F3d 1025 Gonzalez v. Ingersoll Milling Machine Company 133 F.3d 1025
75 Fair Empl.Prac.Cas. (BNA) 1624,72 Empl. Prac. Dec. P 45,183Juana GONZALEZ, Plaintiff-Appellant,v.INGERSOLL MILLING MACHINE COMPANY, Defendant-Appellee.
Argued Oct. 14, 1997.Decided Jan. 14, 1998.
James D. Zaglis (argued), Reno, Zahm, Folgate, Lindberg & Powell, Rockford, IL, for Defendant-Appellee.
Before WOOD, Jr., KANNE and DIANE P. WOOD, Circuit Judges.
Juana Gonzalez ("Gonzalez") sued Ingersoll in a two count complaint alleging in Count I that Ingersoll had discriminated against her because of her race and/or ethnic origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as amended by the Civil Rights Act of 1991, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2, and in Count II, that Ingersoll had discriminated against her with respect to the making and enforcement of an alleged employment contract in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1981. Gonzalez subsequently amended her complaint adding an additional claim of retaliation under 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-3. Finding Gonzalez had failed to provide sufficient factual support for her claims, the district court dismissed Counts I and II. After Gonzalez failed to file a timely response to Ingersoll's summary judgment motion as to Count III, the district court dismissed Count III of the amended complaint and dismissed the suit in its entirety. The district court denied Gonzalez's motions to reconsider her previous motion to accept for filing her late response and to vacate the grant of summary judgment. This appeal followed. We affirm the entry of summary judgment in favor of Ingersoll on all counts and find that the district court did not abuse its discretion by failing to consider Gonzalez's untimely response to Ingersoll's motion for summary judgment as to Count III.
On March 20, 1989, Gonzalez was transferred to Ingersoll's Production Machinery Division, Assembly Department as a Basic Electrical Assembler with a skill classification of F-12. Gonzalez remained an F-12 Basic Electrical Assembler until December 1, 1993, when she was notified that she would be laid off again because of declining work orders. According to Ingersoll's layoff policy employees were to be laid off by length of service, within a job classification, within a department. After receiving 90 days of pay and benefits continuation, Gonzalez was laid off in February 1994. During this layoff, Ingersoll laid off 137 employees. Of these 137 employees, seven were from the Production Machinery Assembly Department, known as the Electrical Department, in which Gonzalez worked. Both Gonzalez and David Thompson ("Thompson"), a white male, were laid off, as were two employees with F-13 rating classifications and three employees with F-14 skill classifications.1
On October 17, 1994, Gonzalez was recalled as an F-12 Panel Wire Assembler in Ingersoll's Pike Road box subassembly plant because the F-12 classification for electrical assemblers had been eliminated and Gonzalez was not qualified for an F13 classification. Although the panel wirer position had different job requirements than the electrical assembler position, the F-12 classification remained the same as were the pay and benefits. In November 1995, Gerald McCalmon ("McCalmon"), Ingersoll's Manager of Production Machinery, decided to move the box subassembly plant from Ingersoll's Pike Road facility to its Eddy Avenue facility for business reasons. At the time of his decision, McCalmon was unaware that Gonzalez had previously filed charges of discrimination against Ingersoll.
Gonzalez was transferred to Ingersoll's Eddy Avenue facility because she was the only employee performing box assembly work in November, 1995. On November 6, 1995, Marion Smith ("Smith") became Gonzalez's supervisor. Smith immediately began having problems with Gonzalez's absenteeism, attitude and quality of work. During the next two weeks Gonzalez left work several times before the end of her shift for personal reasons without notifying or obtaining permission from her supervisor. Smith warned Gonzalez that she must immediately begin working her scheduled hours and that further absenteeism could result in her being released to personnel.2 However, Gonzalez did not handle Smith's counseling well. When Smith raised these issues, Gonzalez became verbally abusive towards Smith, using foul language and accusing a fellow employee of lying. After Gonzalez's tirade, Smith gave Gonzalez another warning about her absenteeism and attitude.
Much of the procedural history in this suit provides a primer on how lawyers should not manage their litigation practices. On December 30, 1994, after receiving a right-to-sue letter from the EEOC, Gonzalez filed a two count complaint against Ingersoll claiming discrimination on account of race and/or ethnic origin in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2, as amended, and discrimination with respect to the making and enforcement of a contract in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 1981. Following the close of discovery on October 2, 1995, Ingersoll filed a motion for summary judgment along with a Local Rule 12(m) statement of uncontested facts. The district court ordered Gonzalez to respond on or before February 28, 1996. After making an oral motion for the extension of time to respond, Gonzalez was granted an extension to respond until March 8, 1996. When Gonzalez had not responded by March 13, 1996, Ingersoll filed a Notice of Readiness for Decision and advised the district court that since Gonzalez had failed to respond to its summary judgment motion it would not be filing a reply brief.
Eleven days after her response was due, March 19, 1996, Gonzalez filed a motion requesting additional time to respond. Gonzalez presented the district court with four reasons to grant her extension: (1) Ingersoll's counsel consented to an extension until March 20, 1996, (2) it was in the interest of justice, (3) no party would be prejudiced by the delay, and (4) because of another case her counsel was unable to timely complete his response.
While the district court was considering Ingersoll's motion for summary judgment as to Counts I and II, Gonzalez sought permission to add another count to her complaint based on retaliation in violation of 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-3. Allowing the additional claim, the district court reopened discovery until September 30, 1996, with regard to the retaliation claim only. On July 22, 1996, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of Ingersoll as to Counts I and II of Gonzalez's amended complaint.
On October 30, 1996, following the close of discovery for Count III, Ingersoll filed another motion for summary judgment along with its Local Rule 12(m) statement of uncontested facts.3 The magistrate judge set a briefing schedule requiring Gonzalez to respond to Ingersoll's summary judgment motion on or before December 2, 1996. Once again, Gonzalez failed to file her response brief on time. Two weeks later, on December 16, 1996, Gonzalez filed another motion to extend time to file her response brief. Based on Gonzalez's assertion that Ingersoll had no objection, the magistrate granted her an extension until January 6, 1997.
In a now familiar pattern, the January 6, 1997, deadline rolled past with Gonzalez filing neither a response brief nor a pre-deadline request for an extension of time. Advising the parties that it had begun work on the summary judgment motion, the district court took Ingersoll's summary judgment motion under consideration on January 9, 1997. The following day Ingersoll filed a Notice of Readiness for Decision, again noting that since Gonzalez had failed to respond Ingersoll would not be filing a reply brief. On January 13, 1997, Gonzalez filed another motion for an extension of time stating two reasons to allow the extension: (1) the interests of justice, and (2) the consent of Ingersoll's counsel. Stating that it had already begun its work and nearly finished its disposition, the district court denied Gonzalez's motion to accept the late response. In his order denying Gonzalez's motion, the district court judge stated:
Plaintiff's attorney has displayed a pattern of inattention in that he has on numerous occasions failed to appear for pretrial conferences. Additionally, when defendant earlier filed a motion for summary judgment as to Counts I and II of the amended complaint, and the court set a due date for plaintiff's response pursuant to plaintiff's oral motion for extension of the original due date, plaintiff failed to file a timely response and, instead, filed an untimely motion for leave to extend the time to file her response.
On January 14, 1997, the district court issued an order granting summary judgment for Ingersoll as to Count III and dismissed Gonzalez's suit in its entirety. Although it denied Gonzalez's motion to accept her respons