U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION Office of Federal Operations P.O. Box 77960 Washington, DC 20013 Geraldine G.,1 Complainant, v. Megan J. Brennan, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service (Pacific Area), Agency. Appeal No. 0120160429 Agency No. 4F-900-0325-15 DECISION Complainant filed a timely appeal with this Commission from the Agency's final decision dated September 25, 2015, dismissing a formal complaint of unlawful employment discrimination in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), as amended, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq. and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq. BACKGROUND During the period at issue, Complainant worked as a Complement Coordinator at the Agency's Processing and Distribution Center facility in Los Angeles, California. On September 11, 2015, Complainant filed the instant formal complaint. Therein, Complainant claimed that the Agency subjected her to discrimination on the bases of race, sex, and age. On September 25, 2015, the Agency issued a final decision. The Agency found that the formal complaint was comprised of the following claim: 1. on July 10, 2015, Complainant was removed from her regular position and placed in another position by management. The Agency dismissed the formal complaint for failure to state a claim, pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(1), after finding that Complainant was not aggrieved. The Agency determined that management only asked Complainant how she would feel about working in the Hiring Unit, and did not actually remove her from her current position to another position. The Agency stated that Complainant had not demonstrated that being asked this question materially affected a term, condition or privilege of her employment. Additionally, the Agency determined that the totality of the circumstances and the actions complained of, even if true, were neither sufficiently severe nor pervasive enough to create a hostile working environment. On appeal, Complainant contends an Agency manager did not merely ask if she would work in another unit, but actually threatened to move her. Moreover, Complainant contends that she has been micro-managed, intimidated and continually alienated from her coworkers. Complainant contends that the issues she raised were not fully addressed in the final decision. Complainant contends that she had alleged denial of upward mobility, loss of salary, and evaluations, all of which were not discussed in the final decision. Complainant contends that the harassment is so pervasive that she has sought counseling from the Employee Assistance Program (EAP), is under the care of a Behavioral Health Specialist for work related stress, and under the care of her Physician for ailments from work related stress. Complainant also provided additional statements to support her hostile work environment claim. ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS As a threshold matter, the Commission determines that Complainant's formal complaint was not comprised exclusively of the matter identified in the Agency's final decision. Instead, a fair reading of the pre-complaint documents and Complainant's formal complaint reflects that Complainant claimed he was harassed through a variety of events that encompassed more than the above referenced July 10, 2015 incident. The regulation set forth at 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(1) provides, in relevant part, that an Agency shall dismiss a complaint that fails to state a claim. An agency shall accept a complaint from any aggrieved employee or applicant for employment who believes that he or she has been discriminated against by that agency because of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age or disabling condition. 29 C.F.R. §§ 1614.103, .106(a) The Commission's federal sector case precedent has long defined an "aggrieved employee" as one who suffers a present harm or loss with respect to a term, condition, or privilege of employment for which there is a remedy. Diaz v. Department of the Air Force, EEOC Request No. 05931049 (April 21, 1994). A fair reading of the instant formal complaint reflects that Complainant alleged a pattern of harassment. In its final decision, the Agency distilled the matters raised in Complainant's informal and formal complaint to a single allegation relating to the July 10, 2015 incident. We find, however, that Complainant's complaint is not comprised exclusively of this matter, but instead, addresses a variety of incidents preceding the July 10, 2015 incident. For example Complainant alleged in her informal complaint that she was addressed unprofessionally and humiliated by her manager. In her formal complaint, Complainant alleged that because of her race, age, and sex, she was denied certain rights, such as upward mobility, was treated differently from others, was denied the opportunity to perform her job duties, was publicly humiliated, and subjected to a hostile work environment. On appeal, Complainant reiterates contentions made in her informal and formal complaints, as well as adding additional details to support her claims. We therefore find, that Complainant has stated one valid claim of harassment. By alleging a pattern of harassment, Complainant has stated a cognizable claim under the EEOC regulations. See Cervantes v. USPS, EEOC Request No. 05930303 (November 12, 1993). CONCLUSION Accordingly, the Agency's final decision dismissing the formal complaint is REVERSED. The complaint as defined herein is REMANDED to the Agency for further processing in accordance with this decision and the ORDER below. ORDER (E0610) The Agency is ordered to process the remanded claims in accordance with 29 C.F.R. § 1614.108. The Agency shall acknowledge to the Complainant that it has received the remanded claims within thirty (30) calendar days of the date this decision becomes final. The Agency shall issue to Complainant a copy of the investigative file and also shall notify Complainant of the appropriate rights within one hundred fifty (150) calendar days of the date this decision becomes final, unless the matter is otherwise resolved prior to that time. If the Complainant requests a final decision without a hearing, the Agency shall issue a final decision within sixty (60) days of receipt of Complainant's request. A copy of the Agency's letter of acknowledgment to Complainant and a copy of the notice that transmits the investigative file and notice of rights must be sent to the Compliance Officer as referenced below. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE COMMISSION'S DECISION (K0610) Compliance with the Commission's corrective action is mandatory. The Agency shall submit its compliance report within thirty (30) calendar days of the completion of all ordered corrective action. The report shall be submitted to the Compliance Officer, Office of Federal Operations, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, P.O. Box 77960, Washington, DC 20013. The Agency's report must contain supporting documentation, and the Agency must send a copy of all submissions to the Complainant. If the Agency does not comply with the Commission's order, the Complainant may petition the Commission for enforcement of the order. 29 C.F.R. § 1614.503(a). The Complainant also has the right to file a civil action to enforce compliance with the Commission's order prior to or following an administrative petition for enforcement. See 29 C.F.R. §§ 1614.407, 1614.408, and 29 C.F.R. § 1614.503(g). Alternatively, the Complainant has the right to file a civil action on the underlying complaint in accordance with the paragraph below entitled "Right to File a Civil Action." 29 C.F.R. §§ 1614.407 and 1614.408. A civil action for enforcement or a civil action on the underlying complaint is subject to the deadline stated in 42 U.S.C. 2000e-16(c) (1994 & Supp. IV 1999). If the Complainant files a civil action, the administrative processing of the complaint, including any petition for enforcement, will be terminated. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.409. STATEMENT OF RIGHTS - ON APPEAL RECONSIDERATION (M0815) The Commission may, in its discretion, reconsider the decision in this case if the Complainant or the Agency submits a written request containing arguments or evidence which tend to establish that: 1. The appellate decision involved a clearly erroneous interpretation of material fact or law; or 2. The appellate decision will have a substantial impact on the policies, practices, or operations of the Agency. Requests to reconsider, with supporting statement or brief, must be filed with the Office of Federal Operations (OFO) within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of this decision or within twenty (20) calendar days of receipt of another party's timely request for reconsideration. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.405; Equal Employment Opportunity Management Directive for 29 C.F.R. Part 1614 (EEO MD-110), at Chap. 9 § VII.B (Aug. 5, 2015). All requests and arguments must be submitted to the Director, Office of Federal Operations, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, P.O. Box 77960, Washington, DC 20013. In the absence of a legible postmark, the request to reconsider shall be deemed timely filed if it is received by mail within five days of the expiration of the applicable filing period. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.604. The request or opposition must also include proof of service on the other party. Failure to file within the time period will result in dismissal of your request for reconsideration as untimely, unless extenuating circumstances prevented the timely filing of the request. Any supporting documentation must be submitted with your request for reconsideration. The Commission will consider requests for reconsideration filed after the deadline only in very limited circumstances. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.604(c). COMPLAINANT'S RIGHT TO FILE A CIVIL ACTION (R0610) This is a decision requiring the Agency to continue its administrative processing of your complaint. However, if you wish to file a civil action, you have the right to file such action in an appropriate United States District Court within ninety (90) calendar days from the date that you receive this decision. In the alternative, you may file a civil action after one hundred and eighty (180) calendar days of the date you filed your complaint with the Agency, or filed your appeal with the Commission. If you file a civil action, you must name as the defendant in the complaint the person who is the official Agency head or department head, identifying that person by his or her full name and official title. Failure to do so may result in the dismissal of your case in court. "Agency" or "department" means the national organization, and not the local office, facility or department in which you work. Filing a civil action will terminate the administrative processing of your complaint. RIGHT TO REQUEST COUNSEL (Z0815) If you want to file a civil action but cannot pay the fees, costs, or security to do so, you may request permission from the court to proceed with the civil action without paying these fees or costs. Similarly, if you cannot afford an attorney to represent you in the civil action, you may request the court to appoint an attorney for you. You must submit the requests for waiver of court costs or appointment of an attorney directly to the court, not the Commission. The court has the sole discretion to grant or deny these types of requests. Such requests do not alter the time limits for filing a civil action (please read the paragraph titled Complainant's Right to File a Civil Action for the specific time limits). FOR THE COMMISSION: ______________________________ Carlton M Carlton M. Hadden, Director Office of Federal Operations February 12, 2016 __________________ Date CERTIFICATE OF MAILING 1 This case has been randomly assigned a pseudonym which will replace Complainant's name when the decision is published to non-parties and the Commission's website. --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ 2 0120160429 5 0120160429