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Ex parte Usrey6/22/2000
PETITION FOR WRIT OF CERTIORARI TO THE COURT OF CIVIL APPEALS
(Re: Clint Usrey v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.)
On Application for Rehearing
The opinion of July 31, 1998, is withdrawn and the following opinion is substituted therefor.
Clint C. Usrey filed an action against Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., seeking 1) workers' compensation benefits and 2) damages based on a claim that he had been wrongfully discharged, in violation of Ala. Code 1975, § 25-5-11.1, as retaliation for seeking workers' compensation benefits. Wal-Mart filed a motion for a summary judgment, and Usrey responded with evidentiary filings in opposition to the motion. Following a hearing, the circuit court entered a summary judgment for Wal-Mart on the wrongful termination claim and made that summary judgment final, pursuant to Rule 54(b), Ala. R. Civ. P. The Court of Civil Appeals, on June 6, 1997, affirmed, without an opinion. Usrey v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc., (No. 2960170) 720 So. 2d 1064 (Ala. Civ. App. 1997) (table). This Court granted Usrey's petition for a writ of certiorari because the Court of Civil Appeals' decision appeared to conflict with prior decisions.
Usrey was continuously employed with Wal-Mart from June 20, 1990, until his termination on December 14, 1994. He began working at the Wal-Mart store in Douglasville, Georgia, and he transferred to the Anniston store in 1991. While working as a cashier on February 23, 1994, he injured his back when he lifted a 25-pound bag of dog food to scan it for a price. He immediately reported the injury to his supervisor. Usrey's supervisor sent him for medical treatment. Usrey reported for work the next day. The store manager called Usrey into his office and, in front of Usrey's supervisor, told Usrey that if he hired an attorney he would be fired. Several days later, Usrey's supervisor placed him on medical leave of absence as a result of the injury. Upon returning to work after being released to light-duty work by his treating physician, Usrey claims, he was treated rudely by Wal-Mart supervisors and managers, and he says that such conduct had not occurred before his injury. Usrey further contends that he was never paid any benefits for not being able to work, and that some of his medical expenses were paid to a point but then even they were stopped. After Usrey returned to work, he told his supervisor that he had hired an attorney because "workers' compensation was not paying for nothing." Shortly after this conversation, the store manager fired Usrey.
A summary judgment should be entered only upon a showing "that there is no genuine issue as to any material fact and that the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter of law." Rule 56(c)(3), Ala. R. Civ. P. " court may not determine the credibility of witnesses on a motion for summary judgment." Phillips v. Wayne's Pest Control Co., 623 So. 2d 1099, 1102 (Ala. 1993). In reviewing a summary judgment, this Court is to view the evidence in a light most favorable to the non-movant and to resolve all reasonable doubts against the movant. Culbreth v. Woodham Plumbing Co., 599 So. 2d 1120 (Ala. 1992). A nonmoving party can defeat a properly supported summary judgment motion by presenting substantial evidence creating a genuine issue of material fact. Capital Alliance Ins. Co. v. Thorough-Clean, Inc., 639 So. 2d 1349 (Ala. 1994); Ala. Code 1975, § 12-21-12.
" n employment contract is generally terminable at will by either party, with or without cause or justification -- for a good reason, a wrong reason, or no reason at all." Culbreth, supra, 599 So. 2d at 1121 (citations omitted). "However, with regard to dismissals based on the filing of [workers'] compensation
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