Complainant,v.Megan J. Brennan, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service, Agency.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Aug 14, 2015

01-2013-2152-0500 (E.E.O.C. Aug. 14, 2015)

U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
Office of Federal Operations
P.O. Box 77960
Washington, DC 20013

,
Complainant,

v.

Megan J. Brennan,
Postmaster General,
United States Postal Service,
Agency.

Appeal No. 0120132152

Agency No. 4G-330-0388-12

DECISION
Complainant filed a timely appeal with this Commission from the Agency's decision dated
April 3, 2013, dismissing her complaint of unlawful employment discrimination in violation of
Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 791 et seq

. Our
review is de novo. Upon review, the Commission finds that Complainant's complaint was
properly dismissed pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(1) for failure to state a claim.
BACKGROUND

At the time of events giving rise to this complaint, Complainant worked as a Distribution Clerk
at an Agency work facility in West Palm Beach, Florida. On June 20, 2012, Complainant
filed a formal complaint wherein she claimed that the Agency subjected her to discrimination
on the bases of her disability and in reprisal for her prior protected EEO activity when:

1. On February 21, 2012, and May 21, 2012, Complainant was issued invoices
from the Agency’s Disbursing Office for $297.63.

2. On July 10, 2012, Complainant was issued a Letter of Demand.1

1 The Agency noted that Complainant also claimed that she was denied reasonable
accommodation which would have allowed her to return to work as early as January 2012.
The Agency bifurcated the claims concerning a denial of reasonable accommodation from the
claims at issue in the instant appeal.
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The Agency dismissed these claims pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(1) on the grounds of
failure to state a claim. The Agency determined that these claims constituted a collateral attack
on the Debt Collection Act. The Agency stated that the claims and remedy are outside the
scope of EEO law. The Agency noted that Complainant claimed that she was subjected to
harassment, but the Agency determined that the alleged incidents do not qualify as harassing
conduct.

CONTENTIONS ON APPEAL

On appeal, Complainant states she has received overpayment in the form of five checks and a
Letter of Demand. Complainant contends that the Agency is harassing her with the intent of
removing her from employment.

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. Department of Defense, EEOC Request
No. 05970596 (July 30, 1998); Kleinman v. United States Postal Service, EEOC Request No.
05940585 (September 22, 1994); Lingad v. United States Postal Service, EEOC Request No.
05930106 (June 25, 1993). The Debt Collection Act, 31 U.S.C. § 3711 et seq. mandates that
monetary disputes involving an agency of the United States government and any claimed
debtor must be resolved through the provisions of the Debt Collection Act. Therefore, the
proper forum for Complainant to have raised her challenge to the invoices and the Letter of
Demand is under the Debt Collection Act process. The Commission’s regulations do not
convey it with jurisdiction to decide matters covered by the Debt Collection Act. Baughman v.
Department of the Army, EEOC Appeal No. 01900865 (February 26, 1990); Amato v.
Department of the Army, EEOC Request No. 0520070240 (July 18, 2007).

The Commission finds that the claims at issue fail to state a claim under the EEOC regulations
because Complainant failed to show that she suffered harm or loss with respect to a term,
condition, or privilege of employment for which there is a remedy. See Diaz v. Department of
the Air Force, EEOC Request No. 05931049 (April 21, 1994).

CONCLUSION

Accordingly, the Agency's final decision dismissing Complainant's complaint is AFFIRMED.

STATEMENT OF RIGHTS - ON APPEAL

RECONSIDERATION (M0610)

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:
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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 9-18 (November 9, 1999). 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 (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
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time limits for filing a civil action (please read the paragraph titled Complainants 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

August 14, 2015
Date