FLOYD R JOLIFF V DETROIT CITY DAIRY INC
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STATE OF MICHIGAN
COURT OF APPEALS
FLOYD R. JOLIFF and MELISSA JOLIFF,
UNPUBLISHED
September 6, 2002
Plaintiffs-Appellees,
v
No. 232530
Wayne Circuit Court
LC No. 99-932905-NP
DETROIT CITY DAIRY, INC.,
Defendant-Appellant.
Before: Cooper, P.J., and Hoekstra and Markey, JJ.
PER CURIAM.
Defendant appeals by leave granted from the trial court’s order denying its motion for
summary disposition. We affirm.
Plaintiff Floyd Joliff1 was hired to work the night shift as a picker of goods in defendant’s
shipping department. This position required plaintiff to use electric powered Crown pallet jacks
to transport merchandise from the warehouse to the loading dock. Pursuant to an operator’s
manual regarding the use of pallet jacks provided during discovery, a pallet jack can be operated
by standing on it or walking beside it. The brakes of the pallet jack are activated by a control
handle that can be pushed forward or down.2 The manual further indicates that a pallet jack can
weigh more than three automobiles once loaded and that it can not be slowed down or stopped
by putting a foot down.
Plaintiff testified during his deposition that defendant required its pickers to meet a quota
of approximately 120 orders per hour and that a warehouse employee could not pick without a
pallet jack. According to plaintiff, the newer pallet jacks were assigned to senior employees.
The less senior or probationary employees, like plaintiff, were not assigned specific pallet jacks
1
While both plaintiff Floyd Joliff and plaintiff Melissa Joliff appeal the trial court’s decision,
any references to “plaintiff” in this opinion, unless otherwise indicated, refer to plaintiff Floyd.
2
The operator’s manual provided during discovery was for a newer Crown pallet jack than the
model used in the instant case. However, Leonard Sturgeon, plaintiff’s supervisor, testified that
both models operated in the exact same manner.
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but were required to choose from those that remained.3 Plaintiff indicated that if a pallet jack
needed maintenance, a supervisor would mark it with a red tag and remove it from service. If
there was no functional pallet jack available in a given shift, plaintiff testified that his supervisor
would assign him to another job for the night. It was uncontested that defendant used an outside
company to perform the maintenance on its pallet jacks.
On October 27, 1996, plaintiff arrived for work and discovered that the only remaining
pallet jacks were marked with red tags. Plaintiff testified that he went to see his supervisor,
Leonard Sturgeon, to inform him of the situation. After notifying Sturgeon, plaintiff claimed
that Sturgeon drove one of the red-tagged pallet jacks over to plaintiff and ordered him to use it.
Plaintiff maintained in his deposition that he informed Sturgeon that the red tag on the pallet jack
said “no brakes.” He alleged Sturgeon told him to use it or go home. Plaintiff interpreted this to
mean that he would be fired if he did not use the pallet jack. During his deposition, plaintiff
admitted that Sturgeon did not appear to have a problem stopping the pallet jack when he
brought it to plaintiff. Plaintiff further testified that a pallet jack could be slowed down by
putting it in reverse.
Sturgeon could not recall plaintiff’s accident when he was deposed, but maintained that
he would never instruct an employee to use equipment that was red-tagged for repairs. Sturgeon
acknowledged that the rationale behind this policy was to prevent injury. He also acknowledged
that brake failure would be one reason to red-tag a pallet jack. According to Sturgeon, although
reversing the pallet jack or changing its direction with the twist grip would eventually slow the
pallet jack down, these actions will not stop the machine.
Plaintiff alleged that on the night of the accident he took additional precautions and drove
the pallet jack at a lower speed. However, plaintiff claimed that he was still forced to jump off
the pallet jack when it failed to stop. According to plaintiff, the brakes on the pallet jack worked
sporadically. Plaintiff further testified that after running into several objects, he repeated his
safety concerns about the pallet jack to Sturgeon and Gordon Johnston, a senior employee, but
was required to continue using it. Plaintiff stated that he used the pallet jack for approximately
four more hours before running run into a pole and falling off the pallet jack due to brake failure.
Plaintiff suffered injury to his left leg and has been unable to work since the accident. He was
diagnosed as having Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy, which is a permanent condition.
On October 18, 1999, plaintiffs filed a complaint alleging that defendant committed an
intentional tort because it knew that the brakes on the pallet jack were not operational and yet
directed plaintiff to use it. Plaintiff maintained that defendant specifically intended to injure him
and knew that an injury was certain to occur, given defendant’s insistence that plaintiff use the
red-tagged pallet jack. Plaintiff Melissa Joliff claimed a loss of consortium due to defendant’s
negligence.
Defendant moved for summary disposition pursuant to MCR 2.116(C)(8) and (10),
arguing that plaintiff’s exclusive remedy was provided through the Worker’s Disability
3
At the time of his injury plaintiff worked for defendant for approximately ninety days and was
not yet a member of a union.
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Compensation Act, MCL 418.131. Defendant claimed that plaintiffs could not meet their burden
of establishing that defendant had actual knowledge that an injury was certain to occur and that it
willfully disregarded that knowledge. Even if plaintiff’s supervisor instructed him to use a redtagged pallet jack with malfunctioning brakes, defendant alleged that these facts failed to
indicate that injury was certain to occur.
In their response to defendant’s motion for summary disposition, plaintiffs compared a
pallet jack without reliable brakes to an automobile without reliable brakes. Plaintiffs pointed
out that Gordon Johnston, a senior employee, agreed that someone using such a machine would
be injured. Plaintiffs further noted the pallet jack’s operating manual lists the lack of reliable
brakes as a known hazard. It specifically states that “[i]f at any time the stopping distance is too
long for you to stop safely, don’t drive the truck.” According to plaintiffs, both Sturgeon and
Johnston knew that plaintiff was having difficulty keeping the pallet jack under control because
he informed them of his problems. He alleged that they could actually see him crashing into
things. The lack of brakes on the pallet jack created a potential for a crash each time it was used.
Plaintiffs argued that summary disposition was inappropriate because the evidence established
that defendant willfully disregarded actual knowledge that an injury was certain to occur.
The trial court held a hearing and denied defendant’s motion. During the hearing, the
trial court noted that “[t]he employer is deemed to have intended to injure when the employer
had actual knowledge that an injury was certain to occur and willfully disregarded that
knowledge.” The trial court reasoned that a chronic history of a dangerous condition was
unnecessary and that the fact there was a sign saying “no brakes” attached to the pallet jack, as
opposed to “needs oil change,” created a situation where there was more than a mere potential
for injury.
On appeal, defendant claims that the trial court erroneously denied its motion for
summary disposition. We disagree. A trial court’s decision on a motion for summary
disposition is subject to review de novo. Hazle v Ford Motor Co, 464 Mich 456, 461; 628
NW2d 515 (2001).
A motion pursuant to MCR 2.116(C)(10) tests the factual support of a plaintiff’s claim
and is only appropriate if no genuine issue of material fact exists and the moving party is entitled
to judgment as a matter of law.4 Auto-Owners Ins Co v Allied Adjusters & Appraisers, Inc, 238
Mich App 394, 397; 605 NW2d 685 (1999). “In reviewing a motion for summary disposition
brought under MCR 2.116(C)(10), we consider the affidavits, pleadings, depositions, admissions,
or any other documentary evidence submitted in a light most favorable to the nonmoving party to
decide whether a genuine issue of material fact exists.” Singer v American States Ins, 245 Mich
App 370, 374; 631 NW2d 34 (2001).
4
We note that defendant moved for summary disposition under MCR 2.116(C)(8) and (10). The
trial court did not specify which subsection of MCL 2.116 it relied upon to deny defendant’s
motion. However, because the trial court considered the pleadings and deposition testimony to
make its decision, we conclude that the trial court’s ruling was based on MCR 2.116(C)(10).
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An employee’s remedies against an employer for work-related injuries are normally
limited to the exclusive provisions of the Worker’s Disability Compensation Act.
The right to the recovery of benefits as provided in this act shall be the
employee’s exclusive remedy against the employer for a personal injury or
occupational disease. The only exception to this exclusive remedy is an
intentional tort. An intentional tort shall exist only when an employee is injured
as a result of a deliberate act of the employer and the employer specifically
intended an injury. An employer shall be deemed to have intended to injure if the
employer had actual knowledge that an injury was certain to occur and willfully
disregarded that knowledge. The issue of whether an act was an intentional tort
shall be a question of law for the court. This subsection shall not enlarge or
reduce rights under law. [MCL 418.131(1) (emphasis added).]
The intentional tort exception applies only when an employer consciously chooses to injure an
employee and deliberately acts or fails to act in furtherance of that intent. Palazzola v Karmazin
Products Corp, 223 Mich App 141, 148; 565 NW2d 868 (1997). An employer’s intent to injure
may be inferred from actual knowledge that an injury was certain to occur and a deliberate
disregard of that knowledge. Id.
In Travis v Dreis & Krump Mfg Co, 453 Mich 149, 173-174; 551 NW2d 132 (1996), our
Supreme Court concluded that a plaintiff must show that a supervisor or managerial employee
had actual knowledge that an injury would follow from the employer’s deliberate actions. The
Travis-Golec Court further held that an injury was certain to occur when “no doubt exists with
regard to whether it will occur.” Id at 174. The mere likelihood or high probability of an injury
is not sufficient. See Bazinau v Mackinac Island Carriage Tours, 233 Mich App 743, 755-756;
593 NW2d 219 (1999). However, as recognized by the Court in Travis-Golec, supra at 178:
When an employer subjects an employee to a continuously operative dangerous
condition that it knows will cause an injury, yet refrains from informing the
employee about the dangerous condition so that he is unable to take steps to keep
from being injured, a factfinder may conclude that the employer had knowledge
that an injury is certain to occur.
The employer’s act must be more than mere negligence or a failure to protect the employee from
a significant risk of harm; rather, it must amount to total disregard of actual knowledge that an
injury is certain to occur. Id. at 179.
In Golec v Metal Exchange Corp, the companion case in Travis-Golec, supra, the
plaintiff was severely burned while loading scrap containing aerosol cans into a furnace. The
plaintiff in Golec testified that after a minor explosion occurred a supervisor told him to continue
loading the scrap. Id. at 158-159. A few hours later another explosion occurred, causing
plaintiff to be burned over thirty percent of his body with molten aluminum. Id. at 159. Our
Supreme Court concluded that this case presented a question of fact regarding whether the
plaintiff’s employer disregarded actual knowledge that an injury was certain to occur. Id. at 186.
This was based on plaintiff’s theory that “every load of scrap had the potential to explode
because each load could have contained a closed aerosol can or water.” Id. The Court further
found that the defendant’s failure to remedy the condition that caused the initial explosion before
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ordering the plaintiff back to work indicated a willful disregard of actual knowledge that an
injury was certain to occur. Id. at 186-187.
Accepting the facts as alleged by plaintiffs in the case at bar, we conclude that plaintiffs
have established a genuine issue of material fact concerning whether defendant committed an
intentional tort. Plaintiff testified that Sturgeon saw the red tag on the pallet jack and was aware
that it stated “no brakes.” Further, plaintiff maintained that Sturgeon implied that if plaintiff did
not use the pallet jack he would be fired. Additionally, plaintiff claimed that during his shift he
repeated his concerns about the brakes to Sturgeon and told him that he was continually running
into things. Sturgeon does not remember these events and steadfastly denies that he would ever
require an employee to use a red-tagged pallet jack. Accordingly, a question of fact exists
whether defendant ordered plaintiff to use the pallet jack knowing that the brakes malfunctioned.
Likewise, viewing the evidence in the light most favorable to plaintiff, we find that a
question of fact remains regarding defendant’s actual knowledge that an injury was certain to
occur. Defendant claims that injury was not certain to occur because it never concealed the
danger and plaintiff was able to take precautionary steps by traveling slower and stepping off the
machine. However, the hazard section in the pallet jack manual states as follows:
While riding, keep your feet on the platform at all times. This truck weighs about
3000 pounds unloaded. You cannot stop or even slow it down with your foot, or
any part of your body, no matter how slow the truck is moving. A foot or hand
caught between the truck and a wall, or any fixed object, will be crushed or even
cut off. [Emphasis added.]
Despite the fact that plaintiff traveled slower the night of the accident, there was still no way for
him to avoid running into something when the brakes failed. We further note that while plaintiff
acknowledges that he was aware of the situation, he was forced to use the pallet jack or lose his
job. Similarly, the plaintiff in Golec knew about the potential for injury, especially after he was
burned the first time, but he continued to work because of his employer’s orders. Id. at 158-159.
Moreover, the fact that Sturgeon drove the pallet jack is not automatically dispositive of
whether Sturgeon was aware that an injury was certain to occur. While the Court in Travis found
the supervisor’s willingness to operate a malfunctioning press indicative of the fact that injury
was not certain to occur, the facts in the instant case are distinguishable. Id. at 182. In Travis,
the supervisor personally adjusted the press and knew that such adjustments had previously
allowed the machine to function properly for at least one or two days. Id. Moreover, the
supervisor in Travis knew that other workers had been able to remove their hands safely because
the press cycled slowly. Id. In the instant case, however, Sturgeon merely drove the pallet jack a
short distance and was not using it to fill orders in the warehouse or meet mandatory quotas.
Sturgeon expected plaintiff to use a 3,000 pound pallet jack, with malfunctioning brakes, in a job
that required plaintiff to make frequent stops in a relatively congested area. Even if Sturgeon
was unaware of the certainty for injury when he first ordered plaintiff to use the pallet jack, the
fact that Sturgeon required plaintiff to continue using the pallet jack after plaintiff told him that
he was running into objects, evidences an actual awareness that injury was certain to occur and a
willful disregard for that knowledge.
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After a careful review of the record and assessing the facts in the light most favorable to
plaintiffs, we conclude that genuine issues of material fact remain such that summary disposition
would be inappropriate. Thus, we agree with the trial court’s decision to deny defendant’s
motion for summary disposition.
Affirmed.
/s/ Jane E. Markey
/s/ Jessica R. Cooper
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