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McClenaghan v. Ohio Dep't of Commerce2/14/2005
DECISION
{ } Plaintiff brings this action for disability discrimination against defendant, the Ohio Department of Commerce (ODC), as a result of the termination of plaintiff's employment in violation of R.C. Chapter 4112 and Ohio's public policy. Defendant denies liability. The issues of liability and damages were bifurcated and the case proceeded to trial on the issue of liability.
{ } Plaintiff worked for ODC for 20 years and held a variety of positions. During the period that included the events at issue, plaintiff held the position of a Maintenance Repair Worker 1 (MRW1) with the State Fire Marshal Division.
{ } Although plaintiff testified that he has cerebral palsy and problems with his vision, his allegations of disability discrimination focus solely on an injury to his back.
{ } Plaintiff injured his back in 1995 while he was stacking pallets. According to findings from an MRI, plaintiff had suffered two herniated disks in his back. (Plaintiff's Exhibit 20.) Plaintiff re-injured his back while working in 1997. However, after the original injury in 1995, plaintiff received numerous temporary work restrictions from his treating physician, which continued through 2001. Then, on June 22, 2001, plaintiff's doctor ordered the following permanent work restrictions: no twisting, no weed eating, no shoveling, no stooping or bending, and no lifting greater than 50 pounds. (Plaintiff's Exhibit 1 and Defendant's Exhibit C.)
{ } At the time that plaintiff received permanent work restrictions, his job title was that of a MRW1. The position description for a MRW1 identifies 80 percent of the job duties as follows: "unskilled & semi-skilled minor repair or replacement on doors, windows, walls, steps, floors & assists skilled maintenance workers; performs unskilled & semi-skilled minor electrical repair *; repairs minor plumbing equipment *; maintains grounds (e.g., mows grass, trims hedges, trees, removes snow & ice); assists with repairs and maintenance of equipment as needed; sweeps floors and cleans carpets." The other 20 percent of the job duties included "duties as assigned; performs laundry duties (e.g., wash, dry & fold bed linens) at the Ohio Fire Academy." (Plaintiff's Exhibit 5A and Defendant's Exhibit A.)
{ } The position description also included a list of ten minimum acceptable characteristics needed to become a MRW1. For example, the characteristics include knowledge of basic plumbing repair, skill in the operation of lawn equipment, and an ability to lift 10 to 100 pounds. (Plaintiff's Exhibit 5A and Defendant's Exhibit A.)
{ } Kathryn Clear, an administrative officer and the facilities manager of the maintenance department, testified about the various duties plaintiff was required to perform under his title and the physical abilities needed to accomplish such tasks. She explained that plaintiff performed the laundry duties for the dormitories, which consisted of collecting, cleaning, and distributing the bed linens from men's and women's dorms. The women's dorm held four beds; men's dorm, 35-40. Plaintiff also was assigned to clean carpets using a self-propelled commercial cleaner. When cleaning the carpets, plaintiff was required to move pieces of furniture which, according to Ms. Clear, weighed anywhere from 100 pounds to more than 150 pounds.
{ } Ms. Clear explained that plaintiff's daily activities included moving boxes into storage, transferring 50 pound boxes of copy paper from storage to the copiers located on two different floors, and handling daily deliveries of paper, pamphlets, and books that typically weighed over 50 pounds. If plaintiff had any additional time during
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