Ramon Young vs FEDEX Express

[DO NOT PUBLISH]
IN THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
________________________ FILED
U.S. COURT OF APPEALS
No. 10-15635 ELEVENTH CIRCUIT
Non-Argument Calendar JUNE 28, 2011
________________________ JOHN LEY
CLERK
D.C. Docket No. 5:09-cv-00084-CAR
RAMON YOUNG,
llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Plaintiff-Appellant,
versus
FEDEX EXPRESS,
llllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll Defendant-Appellee.
________________________
Appeal from the United States District Court
for the Middle District of Georgia
________________________
(June 28, 2011)
Before EDMONDSON, MARCUS and KRAVITCH, Circuit Judges.
PER CURIAM:
Ramon Young, a black male, appeals from the district court’s grant of summary
judgment in favor of his former employer, FedEx Express Corp. (“FedEx”), in his
race discrimination suit, under 42 U.S.C. § 1981 and Title VII. On appeal, he argues
that the district court erred in failing to consider on summary judgment an Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) report that determined FedEx was
discriminatory when it fired him for violating its no-tolerance falsification policy.
After thorough review, we affirm.
We review a district court’s grant of summary judgment de novo, viewing all
evidence and drawing all reasonable inferences in favor of the non-moving party.
Owen v. I.C. Sys., Inc., 629 F.3d 1263, 1270 (11th Cir. 2011). We review district
court decisions on the admissibility of evidence for abuse of discretion. Corwin v.
Walt Disney Co., 475 F.3d 1239, 1249 (11th Cir. 2007) (citations omitted). For us
to reverse based on a district court’s abuse of discretion in an evidentiary ruling, a
party must establish that the error affected a substantial right. Proctor v. Fluor Enter.,
Inc., 494 F.3d 1337, 1349 (11th Cir. 2007). We do not address arguments raised for
the first time in a reply brief. Hall v. Coram Healthcare Corp., 157 F.3d 1286, 1290
(11th Cir. 1998).
Summary judgment is appropriate when the record presents no genuine issue
of material fact and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.
Owen, 629 F.3d at 1270. A disputed fact is material if the fact “might affect the
outcome of the suit under the governing law.” Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477
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U.S. 242, 248 (1986). A dispute is genuine “if the evidence is such that a reasonable
jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.” Id. The moving party bears the
burden of establishing the absence of a dispute over a material fact. Celotex Corp.
v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 323 (1986). The opposing party must offer more than a
“mere scintilla of evidence” in support, such that “the jury could reasonably find for
that party.” Brooks v. County Comm’n of Jefferson County, Ala., 446 F.3d 1160,
1162 (11th Cir. 2006). “Mere conclusions and unsupported factual allegations are
legally insufficient to create a dispute to defeat summary judgment.” Bald Mountain
Park, Ltd. v. Oliver, 863 F.2d 1560, 1563 (11th Cir. 1989).
Title VII prohibits an employer from discriminating against a person based on
race. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-2(a)(1). Likewise, under 42 U.S.C. § 1981, an employee has
the right to be free of intentional racial discrimination in the performance of a
contract. The elements required to establish a § 1981 claim are the same as those
required to establish a Title VII claim. Rice-Lamar v. City of Ft. Lauderdale, 232
F.3d 836, 843 n.11 (11th Cir. 2000).
A plaintiff may establish a discrimination claim through the introduction of
direct or circumstantial evidence of discrimination. Dixon v. The Hallmark
Companies, Inc., 627 F.3d 849, 854 (11th Cir. 2010). Where, as here, the plaintiff
relies on circumstantial evidence of discrimination, we apply the burden-shifting
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framework articulated in McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792 (1973).
Alvarez v. Royal Atl. Developers, Inc., 610 F.3d 1253, 1264 (11th Cir. 2010). Under
that framework, a plaintiff is first required to establish a prima facie case of
discrimination. Id. To do that, he may show that: (1) he is a member of a protected
class; (2) he was subject to an adverse employment action; (3) his employer treated
similarly situated employees who were not members of his protected class more
favorably; and (4) he was qualified to do the job. Burke-Fowler v. Orange County,
447 F.3d 1319, 1323 (11th Cir. 2006).
In determining whether employees are similarly situated in cases involving
allegedly discriminatory discipline, we evaluate “whether the employees [were]
involved in or accused of the same or similar conduct and [were] disciplined in
different ways.” Id. (quotation omitted). The quantity and quality of the
comparator’s misconduct must be “nearly identical” to the plaintiff’s misconduct, in
order “to prevent courts from second-guessing employers’ reasonable decisions.” Id.(quotation omitted).
If the plaintiff presents a prima facie case, the burden of production shifts to
the defendant to offer a legitimate, non-discriminatory reason for the adverse
employment action. Alvarez, 610 F.3d at 1264. If the defendant meets this burden
of production, the burden shifts back to the plaintiff to show that the stated reason is
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a mere pretext for unlawful discrimination. Id. A reason is not pretext for
discrimination unless it is shown both that the reason was false and that
discrimination was the real reason. St. Mary’s Honor Center v. Hicks, 509 U.S. 502,
515 (1993).
Ultimately, an employee must meet the employer’s stated reason “head on and
rebut it, and [he] cannot succeed by simply quarreling with the wisdom of that
reason.” Alvarez, 610 F.3d at 1266. A plaintiff can do so directly, by persuading the
court that a discriminatory reason more likely motivated the employer, or indirectly,
by showing “such weaknesses, implausibilities, inconsistencies, incoherencies, or
contradictions in the employer’s proffered legitimate reasons for its action that a
reasonable factfinder could find them unworthy of credence.” Id. at 1265 (quotation
omitted).
We have held that EEOC cause determinations are generally admissible under
the hearsay exception for public records. Walker v. Nations Bank of Fla. N.A., 53
F.3d 1548, 1554 n.7 (11th Cir. 1995). However, the admissibility of EEOC findings
is subject to the sound discretion of the district court, and a court can refuse to admit
an EEOC report if it “contains legal conclusions in addition to its factual content,” or
if it presents issues of trustworthiness. Barfield v. Orange County, 911 F.2d 644, 650
(11th Cir. 1990).
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Furthermore, EEOC findings are not binding with regard to subsequent
discrimination suits in federal court. Moore v. Devine, 767 F.2d 1541, 1550-51 (11th
Cir. 1985), modified on reh’g, 780 F.2d 1559, 1560 (11th Cir. 1986). The district
court is not required to defer or make reference to the EEOC determination, as it has
to conduct a de novo review of the claims. Id. “[W]hile EEOC findings in general
may be significant evidence, their probative force in individual cases varies
considerably and is left to the determination of the trial court.” Id. (quotation
omitted).
Evidence here showed that Young was responsible for delivering packages in
accordance with company policy and customer preferences, and accurately describing
the nature of his deliveries in FedEx’s system. Company policy, in particular,
required a courier obtain a recipient’s signature except under certain circumstances,
and FedEx fired Young after a customer complained he left a package without
obtaining a signature, and an investigation revealed he falsified the customer’s
signature on that and multiple other occasions. Young filed a charge with the EEOC,
and that agency issued a report concluding that discrimination occurred, but the copy
submitted in court was unsigned, the report itself did not specify the basis for certain
conclusions, and it contained legal analysis that was non-binding.
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Under the circumstances, we conclude that the district court did not abuse its
discretion in failing to consider the EEOC report and its associated information. The
report lacked trustworthiness, and, therefore, the district court’s decision to exclude
the report was reasonable and not an abuse of its discretion. Moreover, assuming
arguendo, that the district court did abuse its discretion, any error was harmless
because it did not affect Young’s substantial rights. Indeed, even when considering
the EEOC report, Young failed to establish a prima facie case of discrimination,
because none of coworkers he proffered as comparators were nearly identical to him
in the quality or quantity of their conduct. Furthermore, even if Young did establish
a prima facie case, undisputed evidence showed that FedEx had a legitimate,
non-discriminatory reason for firing him that he failed to specifically rebut or show
was pretext for discrimination. Accordingly, we affirm.1
AFFIRMED.
1
Finally, Young’s argument that FedEx failed to properly challenge the admissibility of
the EEOC report was raised for the first time in his reply brief. Therefore, it need not be
considered. See Hall, 157 F.3d at 1290.
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