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Mitchell v. Tac Technical Services9/14/2000
Middlesex.
May 16, 2000.
Employment, Discrimination, Termination. Anti-Discrimination Law, Age. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Practice, Civil, Summary judgment. Words, "Public policy exception," "At-will employee."
Civil action commenced in the Superior Court Department on July 9, 1996.
The case was heard by Regina L. Quinlan, J., on motions for summary judgment.
Claiming that his employment was terminated on account of his age (count I) and that the termination was in violation of public policy and therefore wrongful (count II), the plaintiff brought this action against his employer, TAC Technical Services, Inc. (TAC); Polaroid Corporation (Polaroid), his workplace; and David Chenard, his supervisor at Polaroid. A judge of the Superior Court allowed the defendants' motions for summary judgment. We affirm.
We state the material facts, as developed in the plaintiff's deposition and his two affidavits, in the light most favorable to the plaintiff. The plaintiff, a mold mechanic, began working as an at-will employee at Polaroid on or about April 24, 1995. The plaintiff's job involved the use of isopropanol 99, a cleaning substance used to wipe molds. According to the plaintiff, his first supervisor, Robert Roussos, on several occasions told him that he was happy with the plaintiff's job performance as a mold mechanic.
A week or two after beginning his work at Polaroid, the plaintiff found that fumes from the isopropanol "irritated" him, and he asked Roussos for a material safety data sheet (MSDS) at that time. The plaintiff wanted to assess the "hazardous nature" of the isopropanol. Roussos said he would try to locate one. The plaintiff made the same request on a "number of occasions" thereafter. The plaintiff makes no mention in his affidavit of any additional events during the succeeding months of May and June.
On Thursday, July 6, 1995, the plaintiff again asked Roussos for an MSDS on isopropanol. Roussos said he wanted to see the MSDS also; he intended to complain about the fumes as well. Later that day the plaintiff repeated his request in front of the defendant Chenard, the plaintiff's second supervisor. Chenard was annoyed and interrogated the plaintiff in a hostile manner. Later, Chenard gave the plaintiff the wrong MSDS. The plaintiff discovered the mistake, and Chenard told the plaintiff to look for the MSDS himself. The plaintiff was unable to find it. Chenard said he would get the MSDS directly from the manufacturer. The MSDS arrived from the manufacturer very shortly thereafter and was given to the plaintiff.
At about 11 A.M. on July 6 or July 7 (the record is unclear), the plaintiff left work because he "didn't feel well." He did not return to work the following Monday " ecause the hazard still existed and I was sick when I left [work]."
On the following Monday, July 10, he learned that he had been terminated either late Friday or on Monday. On July 10 or 11, he filed a "health complaint" with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and met with that agency on July 11.
In his affidavit dated May 8, 1997, filed in these proceedings, the plaintiff stated, "I need to conduct discovery in this matter in order to demonstrate inter alia, the age of the person that replaced me, when the actual decision was made to discharge me, who made such decision, what statements were made about such decision, what documents are in existence relative to such decision, what conversations . . . Chenard had with Roussos about my performance, etc. I need to take the depositions of . . . Chenard and Roussos." It appears from the record before u
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