U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION Office of Federal Operations P.O. Box 77960 Washington, DC 20013 Michelle G,1 Complainant, v. Megan J. Brennan, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service (Eastern Area), Agency. Appeal No. 0120182474 Agency No. 1C-371-0032-18 DECISION Complainant filed a timely appeal with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC or Commission) from the Agency's final decision dated June 25, 2018, 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., Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Rehabilitation Act), as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 791 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 for the Agency as a Distribution Operations Supervisor, EAS-17 in Nashville, Tennessee. On June 1, 2018, Complainant filed a formal complaint alleging that the Agency subjected her to discrimination based on disability, age, and in reprisal for prior protected EEO activity when: 1. on March 12, 2018, the Human Resource Management Specialist (HRMS) told the Office of Worker's Compensation (OWCP) to audit Complainant; and 2. on or around May 8, 2018, the HRMS refused to timely submit Complainant's CA-7 to OWCP, and wanted Complainant to falsify the form by changing the dates, because the Agency paid Complainant for a week that OWCP should have paid Complainant. In the instant final decision, the Agency dismissed the formal complaint pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(1) for failure to state a claim. Specifically, the Agency found that the formal complaint constituted a collateral attack on the Department of Labor's Office of Workers Compensation Programs (OWCP) process. The Agency determined that this matter was outside of the Commission's jurisdiction and should have been raised with the Department of Labor. The instant appeal followed. On appeal, Complainant argues that her formal complaint is against the Agency and that she is not lodging a collateral attack against the OWCP. Complainant reiterates her claims as stated in her formal complaint. Complainant submits a copy of a physician's note indicating that she was cleared to report back to work on March 5, 2018 to support her claim that the HRMS requested that Complainant sign an official document stating that she returned to work on February 26, 2018. ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS The Commission has held that an employee cannot use the EEO complaint process to lodge a collateral attack on another proceeding. See Wills v. Dep't of Def, EEOC Request No. 05970596 (July 30, 1998); Kleinman v. U.S. Postal Serv., EEOC Request No. 05940585 (Sept. 22, 1994); Lingad v. U.S. Postal Serv., EEOC Request No. 05930106 (June 25, 1993). A claim that can be characterized as a collateral attack, by definition, involves a challenge to another forum's proceeding, such as the grievance process, the workers' compensation process, an internal agency investigation, or state or federal litigation. See Fisher v. Dep't of Defense, EEOC Request No. 05931059 (July 15, 1994). The essence of the instant formal complaint concerns the Agency's alleged request for OWCP audit to Complainant, the Agency's alleged untimely submission of Complainant's CA-7 to the OWCP, and the Agency's alleged request for Complainant to falsify a form by changing the date she returned to work. The proper forum for Complainant to have raised her challenges to actions which occurred during the OWCP process is within that process itself because any remedial relief available to Complainant would be through the OWCP. There is no remedial relief available to Complainant on this matter through the EEO complaint process. Therefore, the Agency properly dismissed the instant formal complaint pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(1), for failure to state a claim due to lodging a collateral attack on the proceedings of the OWCP process. We AFFIRM the Agency's final decision dismissing the instant formal complaint for the reason discussed above. STATEMENT OF RIGHTS - ON APPEAL RECONSIDERATION (M0617) 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. A party shall have twenty (20) calendar days of receipt of another party's timely request for reconsideration in which to submit a brief or statement in opposition. 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. Complainant's request may be submitted via regular mail to P.O. Box 77960, Washington, DC 20013, or by certified mail to 131 M Street, NE, Washington, DC 20507. 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 agency's request must be submitted in digital format via the EEOC's Federal Sector EEO Portal (FedSEP). See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.403(g). 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 (S0610) You have the right to file a civil action in an appropriate United States District Court within ninety (90) calendar days from the date that you receive this decision. 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. If you file a request to reconsider and also file a civil action, 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. Hadden's signature Carlton M. Hadden, Director Office of Federal Operations ___September 26, 2018___________ Date 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 0120182474 4 0120182474 5 0120182474