Geneva B. Scruggs Community Healthcare Center

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Sep 27, 2002

338 N.L.R.B. 12 (N.L.R.B. 2002)

NOTICE: This opinion is subject to formal revision before publication in the
bound volumes of NLRB decisions. Readers are requested to notify the E x­
ecutive Secretary, National Labor Relations Board, Washington, D.C.
20570, of any typographical or other formal errors so that corrections can
be included in the bound volumes.
Geneva B. Scruggs Community Healthcare Center,
Inc. and CSEA, Inc., Local 1000, AFSCME,
AFL–CIO, CSEA Local 713. Case 3–CA–22591
September 27, 2002
SUPPLEMENTAL DECISION AND ORDER
BY MEMBERS LIEBMAN, COWEN, AND BARTLETT
The General Counsel seeks summary judgment in this
case on the ground that the Respondent has failed to file
an answer to the compliance specification.
On February 15, 2001, the Board issued a Decision
and Order,1 which, among other things, ordered the Re­
spondent to make whole certain of its unit employees for
losses resulting from its unlawful failure to pay accrued
vacation pay and grant pay in lieu of accrued personal
leave to unit employees upon their separation from the
Respondent’s employment, as required by the Respon­
dent’s collective-bargaining agreement with the Union.
On February 20, 2002, the United States of Appeals
for the Second Circuit entered its judgment enforcing the
Board’s Order in full.2
A controversy having arisen over the amount of back-
pay due the affected employees, on May 24, 2002, the
Acting Regional Director issued a compliance specifica­
tion and notice of hearing alleging the amounts due un­
der the Board’s Order, and notifying the Respondent that
it should file a timely answer complying with the
Board’s Rules and Regulations. Although properly
served with a copy of the compliance specification, the
Respondent failed to file an answer.
By letter dated July 25, 2002, the General Counsel ad-
vised the Respondent that no answer to the compliance
specification had been received and that unless an appro­
priate answer was filed by August 1, 2002, summary
judgment would be sought. On July 31, 2002, the Re­
spondent’s counsel requested an extension of time to
submit a response to the compliance specification. On
August 1, 2002, the General Counsel granted the Re­
spondent’s request, and further advised the Respondent
that if an answer was not received by close of business
August 6, 2002, he would file a Motion for Summary
Judgment with the Board.
By letter and facsimile dated August 6, 2002, the Re­
spondent’s counsel replied that “in lieu of a formal an­
swer to the Compliance Specification . . . ,” the Respon-
1 333 NLRB No. 48.
2 No. 02-4013.
dent had instructed him to state that the Respondent “nei­
ther admits nor denies the allegations set forth in the
Compliance Specification.” This letter then offered to
settle the matter by agreeing to pay the $12,014.68 set
forth in the compliance specification as the amount of
backpay owed for outstanding personal leave accruals.
The letter, however, further stated the counsel’s “under-
standing” that the issue of backpay owed for unpaid ac­
crued vacation “is being addressed by the Department of
Labor.”
On August 13, 2002, the General Counsel filed with
the Board a Motion for Summary Judgment, with exhib­
its attached. On August 16, 2002, the Board issued an
order transferring the proceeding to the Board and a No­
tice to Show Cause why the motion should not be
granted. The Respondent filed no response. The allega­
tions in the motion and in the compliance specification
are therefore undisputed.
Ruling on the Motion for Summary Judgment
Section 102.56(a) of the Board’s Rules and Regula­
tions provides that the Respondent shall file an answer
within 21 days from service of a compliance specifica­
tion. Section 102.56(c) of the Board’s Rules and Regula­
tions states:
If the respondent fails to file any answer to the specifi­
cation within the time prescribed by this section, the
Board may, either with or without taking evidence in
support of the allegations of the specification and with-
out further notice to the respondent, find the specifica­
tion to be true and enter such order as may be appropri­
ate.
According to the uncontroverted allegations of the Mo­
tion for Summary Judgment, the Respondent, despite
having been advised of the filing requirements, has failed
to file an answer to the compliance specification. As
described above, instead of filing an answer, the Respon­
dent has submitted a letter asserting that it neither admits
nor denies the allegations of the compliance specifica­
tion, and offering to “settle” those allegations by paying
an amount covering only the alleged unpaid accrued per­
sonal leave, without any payment for the unpaid accrued
vacation. The General Counsel’s motion contends that
the total amount owed by the Respondent for compliance
with the Board’s Order, as set forth in the compliance
specification, is $38,788.30, and that, therefore, the Re­
spondent’s settlement offer is inadequate. The adequacy
of the Respondent’s settlement offer, however, is not an
issue presented to us in this proceeding. Rather, the sig­
nificant fact is that the Respondent has failed to file an
answer to the compliance specification.
338 NLRB No. 12
total of $38,788.30 in backpay.
Employee Vacation Personal
Leave
Total
Alexander, Ro w-
land
$138.89 $138.89
Armstead, Sharon 90.56 $138.96 229.52
Barnes, Cheryl 202.12 202.12
Barrett, Annie
Mae
1,519.52 1,519.52
Bell, William 910.19 910.19
Beverly, Earlene 426.46 66.08 492.54
Beville, Helen 444.14 444.14
Black, Celeste 266.63 51.63 318.26
Boggan, Afril 648.58 198.24 846.82
Booker, James 108.21 108.21
Boyd, Darius 455.87 198.24 654.11
Boyd, Diane 53.79 53.52 107.31
Brady, Barbara 60.43 188.48 248.91
Brown, Alberta 132.16 132.16
Brown, Pearline 285.44 285.44
Burrow, Ina 81.28 81.28
Butcher, Betty 455.83 455.83
3 The compliance specification states that claims for the unpaid va­
cation pay were also filed with the New York State Department of
Labor. The compliance specification provides that the amount of un­
paid vacation pay owing pursuant to the Board’s court -enforcedOrder
is to be offset by any payments bargaining unit employees receive from
the New York State Department of Labor.
2 DECISIONS OF THE NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
In the absence of good cause for the Respondent’s fail­
ure to file an answer, we deem the allegations in the
compliance specification to be admitted as true, and grant
the General Counsel’s Motion for Summary Judgment.
Accordingly, we conclude that the net backpay due the
employees is as stated in the compliance specification,
and we will order payment by the Respondent of those
amounts to the employees, plus interest accrued on the
amounts to the date of payment, minus the taxes and
withholding required by Federal and State laws.3
ORDER
The National Labor Relations Board orders that the
Respondent, Geneva B. Scruggs Community Healthcare
Center, Inc., Buffalo, New York, its officers, agents, suc­
cessors, and assigns, shall make whole the individuals
named in the attached Appendix, by paying them the
amounts opposite their names, plus interest as prescribed
in New Horizons for the Retarded, 283 NLRB 1173
(1987), and minus tax and other withholdings required
by Federal and state laws. Summarizing these amounts,
the Respondent is obligated to pay employees
$26,773.62 in unpaid accrued vacation pay and
$12,014.68 in unpaid accrued personal leave pay, for a
Caldwell, Carol 158.08 158.08
Carr, Tracy 540.37 264.32 804.69
Carter, Raymona 198.24 198.24
Chandler, Lisa 198.24 198.24
Clark, Darryl 370.72 173.94 544.66
Coleman, Eugene , 192.00 192.00
Copeland, Addi­
son
196.48 196.48
Cox, Rhonda 98.96 98.96
Craig, Shirley 558.62 132.16 690.78
Craig, Terra 355.01 198.24 553.25
Dent, Evelyn 536.40 198.24 734.64
Dixon, Gary 507.16 198.24 705.40
Donovan, Satora 409.09 409.09
Ferguson, Dorothy 228.22 228.22
Foster, Veronica 278.20 198.24 476.44
Goodson, M i­
chelle
198.24 198.24
Gray, Gordon 29.24 82.76
Gregory, Carolyn 43.51 210.35 253.86
Hannah, William 204.46 204.46
Harris, Johnnie 11.23 181.72 192.95
Hunter, Ali 66.08 66.08
Hunter, M ichelle 228.22 132.16 360.38
Jackson, Latasha 109.78 105.32 215.10
Jamison, Madeline 76.57 76.57
Johnson, Eric 295.33 295.33
Johnson, Mark 113.74 264.32 378.06
Johnson, Thelma 181.80 181.80
Jones, Cathy 469.32 290.88 760.20
Jones, Lynn 396.50 110.01 506.51
Keith, Beatrice 38.64 77.16 115.80
Kimble, Darlene 278.94 99.12 378.06
Lattimore, Chris­
tina
140.67 84.67 225.34
Lawrence, Dennis 162.03 162.03
Liggins, James 162.14 132.16 294.30
Maldonado, Javier 232.85 132.16 365.01
McCabe, Patricia 703.49 92.64 796.13
McClinton, David 289.56 289.56
McCutcheon, Wil­
son
432.74 198.24 630.88
McDuffie, Jacque­
line
77.16 77.16
Middlebrooks,
Jordan
275.45 275.45
Minns. Reaina 264.32 264.32
Moore, Jenneice 92.89 92.89
Moore, Sylvia 86.07 33.04 119.11
Oliver, Hayward 33.04 33.04
3
Overton, Beverly 547.47 264.32 811.79
Parker, Karen 727.52 204.24 931.76
Patton, Adrianne 185.18 185.18
Perkins, Sonya 109.08 109.08
Pruitt, Veronica 92.89 92.89
Quarles, Candice 469.32 145.44 614.76
Reid, Marquel r. 130.18 109.45 239.63
Rice, Alfred 371.47 371.47
Rice, Christine 42.87 99.12 141.99
Riddick, Cammie 44.77 44.77
Roberson, Adrian 143.81 143.81
Ronbinson,
Marion
202.87 202.87
Rosier, Michele 247.38 247.38
Salter, Cynthia 537.78 43.38 581.16
Sanders, A ndre 202.12 198.24 400.36
Scott, Gerard 305.97 305.97
Short, Robbin 96.06 198.24 294.30
Smith, DeMone 232.09 134.40 366.49
Smith, Lawrence 500.46 118.40 618.86
Smith, Mary 681.54 177.60 859.14
Speight, Wilbert 278.20 229.22 507.42
Steward, Marian 79.96 66.08 146.04
Stroud, Deandrea 444.47 444.47
Swindle, Janise 92.64 92.64
Swindle, LaToya 44.00 44.00
Tate, Veronica 278.03 99.12 377.15
Thomas, Patty 277.92 277.92
Thompson, Mar-
tin-
539.58 145.44 685.02
Truitt. Karen 127.73 90.48 218.21
Tubbs., Sophia 360.38 360.38
Wallace, Sharon 498.82 198.24 697.06
Warford, Evett 523.28 523.28
Washington,
Marjorie
1,199.79 145.44 1,345.23
Weary, Angela 115.74 115.74
White. James 344.91 177.60 522.51
Wideman, Carolyn 71.36 71.36
Williams, Anthony 208.33 208.33
Woods. M ichael 70.27 70.27
Wright. Jacquelyn 127.73 90.48 218.21
Young, Josephine $140.12 277.92 418.04
CHCC EMPLOYEES
Vacation Personal
Leave
Total
Chestnut,
Betrina
$79.72 $109.08 $188.80
Collins,
Victor
306.97 109.08 416.05
Costley,
Susan
290.88 290.88
Escalara,
Lisa
36.36 36.36
Guiher,
Patricia
300.24 218.16 518.40
Moss,
Bridget
299.97 181.80 481.77
Owens,
Toni
59.99 218.16 278.15
Patterson,
Duvonne
305.97 109.08 415.05
TOTAL $26,773.62 $12,014.68 $38,788.30
Dated, Washington, D.C. September 27, 2002
Wilma B. Liebman, Member
William B. Cowen, Member
Michael J. Bartlett, Member
(SEAL) NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD