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Heiat v. Eastern Montana College3/4/1996
53 St.Rep. 162
Submitted on Briefs November, 9, 1995.
Nafisseh Heiat appeals from an order of the Thirteenth Judicial District Court, Yellowstone County, granting Eastern Montana College and the Montana Commissioner of Higher Education (EMC) summary judgment, concluding that EMC was not liable for sexual discrimination in employment. We reverse.
The following issue is raised on appeal:
Did the District Court err in granting EMC's motion for summary judgment?
Plaintiff, Dr. Nafisseh Heiat Ph.D. (Nafisseh), and her husband Dr. Abbas Heiat Ph.D. (Abbas) are employed as associate professors in the Department of Accounting and Information Systems at EMC. Both Nafisseh and Abbas possess Ph.D. degrees from Portland State University. The District Court determined that they, as faculty members at EMC, perform substantially the same work. Abbas was hired by EMC in 1987 as an assistant professor in the information systems program. At the time Abbas was hired, EMC had recently lost its only faculty member in the information systems program who held a Ph.D. EMC advertised for the position listing a Ph.D. as a qualification. EMC offered Abbas the position.
Based on Abbas' "terminal" doctoral degree and experience, his starting salary under the collective bargaining agreement then in effect would have been $20,491. However, the collective bargaining agreement authorized the EMC administration to offer higher salaries to prospective faculty members in extraordinary recruitment situations. Fearing that Abbas would not accept the position for $20,491, EMC offered him in excess of $30,000. Ultimately, after additional negotiation, Abbas accepted the position at a starting salary of $40,000.
In 1988, EMC advertised for another faculty opening in the information systems program. The posting listed a Ph.D. or equivalent as a qualification. Nafisseh received her Ph.D. in 1987, and applied for this position with EMC. She was offered the position with a staring salary of $27,190. Although she requested an additional adjustment to the starting salary, her request was denied and she accepted the position for the offered salary. Both Nafisseh and Abbas have received periodic salary increases, as mandated by the collective bargaining agreement and, during the 1992-93 academic year, Nafisseh earned $39,049 while Abbas earned $54,575. This disparity is due entirely to the difference in their starting salaries.
In April of 1991, Nafisseh filed a complaint with the Montana Human Rights Commission alleging that she had been discriminated against based on her sex and that she had not been given equal pay for equal work. The Montana Human Rights Commission issued a right to sue letter. In her District Court complaint, Nafisseh alleged violations of the Montana Human Rights Act, the Government Code of Fair Practices, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, the Civil Rights Act of 1991, and the Equal Pay Act. On June 24, 1994, the District Court granted EMC's motion for summary judgment. Nafisseh appeals from this order.
Our standard in reviewing a district court's grant of a motion for summary judgment is de novo. Minnie v. City of Roundup (1993), 257 Mont. 429, 431, 849 P.2d 212, 214. That is, we review an order of summary judgment using the same criteria as the district court; we are guided by Rule 56, M.R.Civ.P. Chilberg v. Rose (1995), 273 Mont. 414, 903 P.2d 1377, 1378 (citing Minnie, 849 P.2d at 214). Thus, we determine whether a genuine issue of material fact exists and whether the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Minnie, 849 P.2d at 2
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