[Redacted], Jasper S., 1 Complainant,v.Louis DeJoy, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service (Pacific Area), Agency.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Feb 9, 2021

Appeal No. 2021000899 (E.E.O.C. Feb. 9, 2021)

U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION Office of Federal Operations P.O. Box 77960 Washington, DC 20013 Jasper S.,1 Complainant, v. Louis DeJoy, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service (Pacific Area), Agency. Appeal No. 2021000899 Agency No. 4F-913-0095-20 DECISION Complainant filed a timely appeal with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC or Commission) from the Agency's final decision dated October 29, 2020, dismissing his 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. BACKGROUND During the relevant time, Complainant worked as a Postmaster at the Agency’s Porterville Post Office facility in Porterville, California. On October 10, 2020, Complainant filed a formal complaint alleging that the Agency subjected him to discrimination based on sex and in reprisal for prior EEO activity. In its October 29, 2020 decision, the Agency dismissed the formal complaint as untimely filed. The Agency determined that Complainant received his Notice of Right to File Discrimination Complaint (hereinafter “Notice”) on September 23, 2020. The Agency determined further that Complainant waited beyond the fifteen-day time limit to file the complaint, and that the complaint filing date was October 10, 2020. 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 2021000899 The instant appeal followed. ANALYSIS AND FINDINGS The regulation set forth at 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(2) states, in pertinent part, that an Agency shall dismiss a complaint which fails to comply with the applicable time limits contained in 29 C.F.R. § 1614.106, which, in turn, requires the filing of a formal complaint within fifteen (15) days of receiving notice of the right to do so. Here, the record contains a “USPS Tracking Intranet” printout (9410 8036 9930 0126) showing that the Notice was delivered to Complainant’s home address of record2 and signed by “[Complainant’s name]” on September 23, 2020. We note that, on appeal, Complainant argues that the Notice was not delivered to his address of record on September 23, 2020. Instead, he asserts the Notice was delivered to the Post Office where Complainant worked and signed for by another employee. However, there is no evidence in the record or provided on appeal to support Complainant’s assertions. In sum, the record supports a determination that Complainant signed for the Notice on September 23, 2020, and that he filed the formal complaint beyond the fifteen-day period, on October 9, 2020, as evidenced by the postmark on the envelope containing the complaint (and not on October 10, 2020, as determined by the Agency). Complainant has not presented adequate justification for extending the limitation period beyond fifteen days. The Agency's final decision to dismiss the formal complaint for untimely filing is AFFIRMED. 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. 2 The tracking record indicates the same home address that is recorded as Complainant’s home address in the EEO counseling report. 3 2021000899 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. 4 2021000899 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 February 9, 2021 Date