The fed had been fired for throwing concrete at a car being driven by her supervisor but she filed a union grievance challenging her removal. The grievance eventually came before an arbitrator, who affirmed her termination from employment over two years later.
She then filed an EEO complaint, claiming race discrimination because she had been disciplined for acting out against her supervisor, who is African American, while the supervisor was never disciplined for taking actions against her.
The Postal Service dismissed the complaint as untimely, saying that the fed was not allowed to wait more than 45 days to file an EEO complaint, even if she was going through the grievance process first.
The fed next filed an action in court, claiming that her complaint should be considered timely because she had actually contacted an EEO counselor when she was initially fired, and was told she could wait until the grievance process was over to pursue her discrimination claim.
The Court of Appeals found that the fed's arguments to excuse her untimeliness were not credible because her work area contained posters informing employees of the filing time limits.
The case is Smith v. Potter, No. 04-3531 (7th Cir. May 2, 2006).
Home | About Us | Privacy Statement | Terms of Use | Copyright Infringement | EEO Public File Report | Bonneville International
AP material Copyright 2009 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.