Joseph Lloyd Collins v. 24 Hour Fitness
Published: Jun. 29, 2002 | Result Date: Mar. 5, 2002 | Filing Date: Jan. 1, 1900 |Case number: 6560323 Arbitration – $600,000
Attorneys
Plaintiff
Robert L. Bastian Jr.
(Bastian & Dini)
Marina R. Dini
(Bastian & Dini)
Defendant
Dominic J. Messiha
(Law Office of Dominic J. Messiha, PC)
Experts
Plaintiff
Jack Zuckerman
(technical)
Defendant
Michael P. Ward
(technical)
Facts
Plaintiff Joseph Lloyd Collins, an African-American, worked for 24 Hour Fitness, except for brief
intervals, from 1984, when it was known as Family Fitness, until October 1998. Collins rose to
the level of Assistant General Manager at the Torrance Club of 24 Hour Fitness. Additionally,
Collins distinguished himself as the top salesperson within the company nationwide, winning
numerous awards and earning favorable compensation packages as a result. Instead of
advancing, however, Collins was ultimately transferred and demoted at the behest of the district
manager, Greg Rowe. According to witness testimony, Rowe remarked that he "would never let a
n----r run one of his clubs." In the presence of two other employees, he remarked that "this f---ing
n----r is impossible to deal with" and that he "never should have promoted that f---ing n----r." On
one occasion, Rowe remarked that "H.R., Human Resources, is finally getting this n----r out of
my club." When a member withdrew an unfounded complaint Rowe had encouraged him to
make against Collins, Rowe remarked, "DonÆt worry about it. IÆve been trying to get rid of the n----
r anyway." In the summer of 1998, a 24 Hour Fitness Human Resources investigation was
conducted, which began as an investigation of a sexual harassment complaint against Collins.
The complainant later testified that her complaint was false, but that she was put up to making
the complaint by Rowe. Although the human resource investigation ultimately exonerated Collins
on the charge of harassment, the investigation nonetheless expanded into an evaluation of
CollinsÆ management abilities. Rowe denied any participation in the investigation, but during this
time, he sent numerous e-mails to both the human resources department and upper
management urging action against Collins. In the Fall of 1998, Collins was transferred away from
the Torrance Club, stripped of a favorable compensation package, and demoted to sales
counselor. After learning of RoweÆs epithets, Collins left 24 Hour Fitness. <!-- Robert Devich-->
Settlement Discussions
On Feb. 25, 2000, plaintiff served a C.C.P. Section 998 offer to compromise on defendant for $49,999.
Damages
The plaintiffÆs expert presented six mitigation scenarios that ranged from a high of $2,315,908 to $827,306. The defendantÆs expert calculated a range of damages from a low of $93,397 (incorporating the change in commission structure that went into effect three months after the plaintiff resigned) to a high of $292,000. The plaintiff claimed "damages for the ordinary emotional suffering of a common man unjustly deprived of what was promised and what his merit should have earned, free from consideration of race."
Other Information
The arbitrator Robert R. Devich, retired Associate Justice of California Courts of Appeal found: that defendant 24 Hour Fitness was involved in unlawful employment discrimination based upon race in violation of the public policy of the state of California; that the plaintiff sufficiently showed that the district manager Greg Rowe made racial statements which revealed his racial animus; that the racial animus shown by Rowe led to the transfer and ultimate decision by Collins to resign; that defendant 24 Hour Fitness was involved in unlawful employment discrimination based upon race in violation of the Fair Employment and Housing Act (Government Code section 12940, et seq.); that there was a wrongful demotion in breach of an implied-in-fact employment contract by defendant 24 Hour Fitness; that Collins suffered economic loss of $200,000 as a result of the foregoing; that Collins suffered $400,000 in emotional distress and finally, the court held that plaintiff was not entitled to punitive damages against 24 Hour Fitness because it was not shown by clear and convincing evidence that the district manager was a "managing agent" of 24 Hour Fitness; that the plaintiff is entitled to attorney fees and costs.
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