[Redacted], George D., 1 Complainant,v.Louis DeJoy, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service (Western Area), Agency.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Mar 16, 2021

Appeal No. 2020003879 (E.E.O.C. Mar. 16, 2021)

U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION Office of Federal Operations P.O. Box 77960 Washington, DC 20013 Jannet O.,1 Complainant, v. Jeffrey A. Rosen, Acting Attorney General, Department of Justice (Federal Bureau of Prisons), Agency. Appeal No. 2021000351 Agency No. BOP-2020-00519 DECISION On October 20, 2020, Complainant filed a timely appeal with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC or Commission) from a final Agency decision (FAD) dated September 22, 2020, dismissing her complaint of unlawful employment discrimination in violation of Section 501 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Rehabilitation Act), as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 791 et seq. BACKGROUND At the time of events giving rise to this complaint, Complainant was employed by the Agency as an Administrative Assistant, GS-06, at the Designations & Sentence Computation Center in Grand Prairie, Texas. On May 4, 2020, Complainant filed an equal employment opportunity (EEO) complaint which the Agency defined as alleging she was discriminated against based on her disability and reprisal for prior EEO activity when: 1. On September 20, 2019, her supervisor removed her from the 0600 - 1430 shift for six months, due to excessive leave usage, 2. management denied her request for advance leave, and 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. 2021000351 2 3. On September 26, 2019, she learned her supervisor sent confidential information regarding her mental health from the Team group mailbox. The Agency dismissed the complaint due to the untimely filing of the formal complaint. The instant appeal followed. Analysis and Findings Complainant received the notice of right to file an EEO complaint by March 2, 2020. It notified her she had to file an EEO complaint within 15 calendar days of its receipt, and gave a mailing address, fax number, and email address to do so. EEOC Regulation 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(2) requires, in part, that an agency dismiss a complaint which fails to comply with the applicable time limits contained in 29 C.F.R. § 1614.106. This regulation requires the filing of a formal complaint within 15 days of receiving the notice of the right to do so. The Agency dismissed the EEO complaint because Complainant did not file it until May 4, 2020, beyond the limitation period. Complainant filed her complaint by email, explaining she previously filed the complaint via fax on March 24, 2020, attaching documentation. However, the FAD accurately recounted that the documentation showed the fax number Complainant used to transmit her EEO complaint was not the same number given in the notice of right to file an EEO complaint. The Agency also found that even if Complainant used the correct fax number, March 24, 2020, was still beyond the 15-day time limit. The FAD is AFFIRMED because Complainant did not timely file her EEO complaint and has provided no reason to excuse her failure to follow the instructions in the notice of right to file. STATEMENT OF RIGHTS - ON APPEAL RECONSIDERATION (M0920) The Commission may, in its discretion, reconsider this appellate decision if Complainant or the Agency submits a written request that contains arguments or evidence that 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 for reconsideration must be filed with EEOC’s Office of Federal Operations (OFO) within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of this decision. If the party requesting reconsideration elects to file a statement or brief in support of the request, that statement or brief must be filed together with the request for reconsideration. 2021000351 3 A party shall have twenty (20) calendar days from receipt of another party’s request for reconsideration within 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). Complainant should submit his or her request for reconsideration, and any statement or brief in support of his or her request, via the EEOC Public Portal, which can be found at https://publicportal.eeoc.gov/Portal/Login.aspx. Alternatively, Complainant can submit his or her request and arguments to the Director, Office of Federal Operations, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, via regular mail addressed to P.O. Box 77960, Washington, DC 20013, or by certified mail addressed to 131 M Street, NE, Washington, DC 20507. In the absence of a legible postmark, a complainant’s request to reconsider shall be deemed timely filed if OFO receives it by mail within five days of the expiration of the applicable filing period. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.604. An agency’s request for reconsideration must be submitted in digital format via the EEOC’s Federal Sector EEO Portal (FedSEP). See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.403(g). Either party’s request and/or statement or brief in opposition must also include proof of service on the other party, unless Complainant files his or her request via the EEOC Public Portal, in which case no proof of service is required. Failure to file within the 30-day time period will result in dismissal of the party’s request for reconsideration as untimely, unless extenuating circumstances prevented the timely filing of the request. Any supporting documentation must be submitted together with the 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. 2021000351 4 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 January 12, 2021 Date