ELLEN SEGAL HUVELLE, United States District Judge.
Plaintiffs Service International Union National Industry Pension Fund (the
Unless otherwise noted, the facts set forth here are undisputed, taken from the Joint Stipulations of Fact and the uncontroverted portions of plaintiffs' statement of undisputed material facts.
In 2010, Harborview entered into a "valid collective bargaining agreement ("CBA") with 1199 SEIU Healthcare Workers East, New Jersey Region" (the "Union"). (See Joint Facts ¶ 1; Pls.' Facts ¶ 4; see also Pls.' Mot. Ex. 1 (CBA).) Pursuant to the CBA, which remains in effect today,
Effective April 1, 2010, Harborview agreed to contribute to the Fund on behalf of its covered employees at the initial rate of "2.2% per paid hour ... excluding overtime pay, uniform allowance and unused sick leave payout." (CBA art. 25.3(a); see also Joint Facts ¶ 2; Pls.' Facts ¶ 22.) Thereafter, Harborview's contribution rate increased annually: to 2.37% (effective April 1, 2011), 2.55% (effective April 1, 2012), 2.75% (effective April 1, 2013), 2.97% (effective April 1, 2014), and 3.20% (effective April 1, 2015). (See Pls.' Facts ¶¶ 20-25; Joint Facts ¶ 3; CBA art. 25.3(a).)
Harborview's contributions, along with "supporting remittance reports," are due by "the 15th day of the month following the month in which the work was performed for which the contributions are owed." (Collection Policy § 2.1; see also Pls.' Facts ¶ 9; Trust Agreement § 3.1; CBA art. 25.3(b), (c).) The remittance reports show the "monthly paid hours reported by [Harborview] and the monthly pension contributions paid to the ... Fund." (Joint Facts ¶ 8; see also Pls.' Facts ¶ 9 ("remittance reports include hours paid, excluding overtime, for all eligible... employees").)
For delinquent contributions, the Fund is entitled to collect "interest, liquidated damages, attorneys' fees and any other expenses incurred by the Fund in collecting any delinquency."
According to plaintiffs, over the past six years Harborview has failed to remit in full its required contributions for employees in three classifications covered by the CBA: certified assistant nurses, dietary and housekeeping employees, and recreational employees. (See Pls.' Facts ¶ 26.) As a result, plaintiffs claim that Harborview owes the Fund a total of $36,766.17 in unpaid contributions, interest as of December 21, 2015, and liquidated damages, plus a yet to be determined amount in attorneys' fees and costs. (See Pls.' Facts ¶¶ 26-30; see also Anderson Decl. ¶¶ 31-33 & Exs. A-C thereto.) Specifically, plaintiffs calculate that Harborview owes the following: (1) for certified assistant nurses, $12,869.02 in unpaid contributions, $4,761.03 in liquidated damages, and $1,724.72 in interest, for a total of $19,354.77; (2) for dietary and housekeeping employees, $8,766.58 in unpaid contributions, 4,643.27 in liquidated damages, and $1,557.38 interest, for a total of $14,967.23; and (3) for recreational employees, $1,413.29 in unpaid contributions, $742.84 in liquidated damages, and $288.04 in interest, for a total of $2,444.17. (Pls.' Facts ¶¶ 28-30
The Fund is also authorized to conduct a payroll review audit of any contributing employer for the purpose of ensuring that such employer has complied with the contribution requirements. (See Trust Agreement § 5.1(14); Collection Policy § 4.1; Pls.' Facts ¶ 10; CBA art. 25.5.) When an audit discloses an underpayment, the Fund sends a letter to the employer requesting payment of the underpayment, interest, and liquidated damages. (See Collection Policy §§ 4.7, 4.10.) If the employer fails to pay after three notices, the Fund files suit. (See Collection Policy § 4.7.) The Fund is also authorized to collect attorneys' fees and costs associated with the payroll review. (See Collection Policy §§ 5.3-5.4.)
The Fund conducted a payroll review audit of Harborview for the period of April 1, 2010, through December 31, 2011, with respect to two groups of employees: its certified assistant nurses and its recreational employees. (Pls.' Facts ¶ 31; see also Pls.' Mot. Ex. 6 (audit-related documents).) The conclusion of the audit was that Harborview had underreported the paid hours of eligible employees during the period covered by the audit, resulting in it owing unpaid contributions, interest and liquidated damages. (Pls.' Facts ¶ 32; see also Pls. Mot. Ex. 6, at 1-2 (letters from the Fund to Harborview dated September 21, 2012, and November 8, 2012, attaching results of audit and seeking payment).) As of November 30, 2012, the Fund calculated that Harborview owed a total of $1,893.08 for its certified assistant nurses ($1440.54 in unpaid contributions, $125.82 in liquidated damages and $326.72 in interest) and $143.37 for its recreational employees ($75.18 in unpaid contributions, $50.00 in liquidated damages, and $18.19 in interest), for a total of $2,036.45. (See Pls.' Mot. Ex. 6, at 1.) Harborview has "stipulated that it has no basis to contest the findings
As of December 21, 2015, with the additional accrued interest and increased rate of liquidated damages due to litigation, plaintiffs calculate that Harborview owes a total of $3,389.73 for its certified assistant nurses ($1440.93 in unpaid contributions, $228.19 in liquidated damages, and $1,720.16 in interest) and a total of $221.61 for its recreational employees ($75.18 in unpaid contributions, $50.00 in liquidated damages, and $97.43 in interest), for a total of $3,611.34.
On April 24, 2015, plaintiffs filed suit against Harborview seeking to recover the amounts they believed Harborview owed the Fund pursuant to the payroll audit (see Compl. ¶¶ 21-27) and as a result of other delinquent contributions (Compl. ¶¶ 37-43), plus interest, liquidated damages, and attorneys' fees and costs.
"A party may move for summary judgment, identifying each claim or defense — or the part of each claim or defense — on which summary judgment is sought. The court shall grant summary judgment if the movant shows that there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law." Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). A "material" fact is one capable of affecting the substantive outcome of the litigation. See Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). A dispute is "genuine" if there is enough evidence for a reasonable jury to return a verdict for the non-movant. See Scott v. Harris, 550 U.S. 372, 380, 127 S.Ct. 1769, 167 L.Ed.2d 686 (2007). The inquiry under Rule 56 is essentially "whether the evidence presents a sufficient disagreement to require submission to a jury or whether it is so one-sided that one party must prevail as a matter of law." Anderson, 477 U.S. at 251-52, 106 S.Ct. 2505. The moving party bears the initial burden of identifying portions of the record that demonstrate the absence of any genuine disputes. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1); Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986). In response, the non-moving party must point to portions of the records that reveal a genuine dispute or show that the materials cited by the moving party do not establish the absence of a genuine dispute. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(c)(1); Celotex, 477 U.S. at 324, 106 S.Ct. 2548. Inferences must be analyzed in the light most favorable to the non-movant, see Anderson, 477 U.S. at 255, 106 S.Ct. 2505, but conclusory assertions offered without any evidentiary support do not establish a genuine issue for trial. See Greene v. Dalton, 164 F.3d 671, 675 (D.C.Cir.1999).
Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on the payroll audit claim is supported by a declaration from Kenneth Anderson, the Fund's Contribution Compliance Manager ("Anderson Decl."), and copies of the audit-related documents. (See Pls.' Facts ¶¶ 32-33; Anderson Decl. ¶¶ 34-36; Pls.' Mot. Ex. 6.) Plaintiffs contend that this evidence establishes as an undisputed fact that as of December 21, 2015, Harborview owed the Fund a total of $3,611.34 due to the payroll audit. (See Pls.' Facts ¶¶ 32-33; Anderson Decl. ¶¶ 34-36; Pls.' Mot. Ex. 6.) In response, defendant has admitted that "it has no basis to contest the findings of the ... payroll audit" (Joint Facts ¶ 7), and it has not cited any evidence that controverts the Anderson Declaration. Accordingly, there is not a genuine dispute as to the amount Harborview owes pursuant to the payroll audit, and plaintiffs are entitled to summary judgment on this claim.
Plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment on the delinquent contributions claim is also supported by the Anderson Declaration, along with the spreadsheets attached thereto, and other documentary evidence. (See Anderson Decl. ¶¶ 25-33 & Exs. A-C (spreadsheets showing plaintiffs' calculations of amounts owed); CBA; Trust Agreement; Collection Policy.) Plaintiffs contend that this evidence establishes as an undisputed fact that as of December 21, 2015, Harborview owed the Fund an additional $36,766.17 in unpaid contributions, interest, and liquidated damages. (Pls.' Facts ¶¶ 26-30.) Defendant again does not contest liability, but argues that plaintiffs are not entitled to summary judgment on damages because there are genuine disputes as to the amount that Harborview owes. The Court disagrees.
Defendant first argues that the Anderson Declaration and attached spreadsheets are inadequate support for plaintiffs' damages calculation because they fail to "provide a conclusive figure or a defined methodology as to how the Pension Fund calculated the alleged amounts owed." (Def.'s Opp'n at 4.) Neither criticism is well-founded. The Anderson Declaration includes both the amounts that the Fund has calculated it is due from Harborview and a detailed explanation of how those amounts were calculated. (See Anderson Decl. ¶¶ 25-33 & Exs. A-C.) In addition, the spreadsheets, which summarize 557 pages of Harborview's remittance reports and records of contributions paid to the Fund, are admissible summaries of the voluminous underlying evidence which may be used "to prove the content" of the underlying documents. See Fed. R. Evid. 1006
Defendant next argues that plaintiffs' evidence is insufficient because "none of the documents produced by Plaintiffs indicate what eligibility criteria the Pension Fund applied when determining whether Harborview paid the requisite contribution
Defendant's final argument is that the spreadsheets are unreliable evidence because plaintiffs' interest calculations are "wildly inconsistent," specifically that the spreadsheets reflect that no interest was charged for months in which plaintiffs' contributions were allegedly hundreds of days late or that interest was erroneously charged where a contribution was paid on time. (Def.'s Opp'n at 4.) A close look at the spreadsheets reveals that defendant's analysis is flawed. First, the spreadsheets that defendant is referring to, which were submitted by defendant as attachments to a declaration by defendant's attorney, are not the same as the spreadsheets attached to the Anderson Declaration. (Compare Anderson Decl. Exs. A-C (spreadsheets dated December 21, 2015) with Jasinski Decl. Ex. A (spreadsheets dated October 14, 2015).) Second, defendant's spreadsheets are not admissible evidence because they were prepared by plaintiffs for the purpose of settlement discussions. See Fed. R. Evid. 408; Bristol Manor, 2016 WL 354873, at *9. Third, to the extent defendants' criticisms remain applicable to plaintiffs' spreadsheets, in all but one instance where defendant contends that interest should have been charged but was not, plaintiffs have explained that the interest due appears in the "additional interest due" column instead of first "interest" column.
In the end, none of defendant's arguments challenging the sufficiency of plaintiffs' evidence raise material issues of fact. See, e.g., Bristol Manor, 2016 WL 354873, at *9 (where the employer has "produced no admissible evidence contradicting [p]laintiffs' spreadsheets, nor any colorable argument calling the spreadsheets' accuracy into doubt," "it therefore has not met its burden to point to specific facts in the record that reveal a genuine issue for trial"). Accordingly, plaintiffs are entitled to summary judgment on their delinquent contributions claim.
Accordingly, and for the reasons stated above, plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment will be granted. A separate Judgment Order [ECF No. 20] accompanies this Memorandum Opinion.
Fed. R. Evid. 1006