U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION Office of Federal Operations P.O. Box 77960 Washington, DC 20013 Tammi W.,1 Complainant, v. Lloyd J. Austin III, Secretary, Department of Defense (Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences), Agency. Appeal No. 2021001545 Agency No. USUHS-20-009 DECISION Complainant filed a timely appeal with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC or Commission) from the Agency's decision dated March 10, 2021, dismissing her complaint alleging 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., and 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 worked as a Program Support Assistant, GS-0303-06, at the Agency’s Preventive Medicine and Biostatistics (PMB) facility in Bethesda, Maryland. On November 23, 2020, Complainant filed a formal complaint alleging that the Agency subjected her to sexual harassment and discrimination on the bases of race (Black), disability, and reprisal for prior protected EEO activity when: a. On August 26, 2020, her second-line supervisor (Supervisor2) removed her from her position as PMB Program Support Assistant; b. On August 19, 2020, her first-line supervisor (Supervisor1) blocked her exit from 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. 2021001545 2 her cubicle and threatened to throw hot water on her if she became unruly; c. On August 17, 2020, Supervisor1 started an argument with her and refused to allow her to transfer from her PMB workstation to a desk in the USU library to complete her tasks that day; d. On August 14, 2020, Supervisor1 refused to assign her a mentor; e. On August 12, 2020, Supervisor1 ordered her to claim Leave Without Pay for leave she took between August 3 to 10, 2020; f. On July 13-17, 2020, Supervisor1 refused to sign her Metro Card travel subsidy form; g. On July 7, 2020, Supervisor1 approached her desk and made a hunched up, fist- clenched jumping motion as if he were going to hit her; and h. On May 26, 2020 - August 20, 2020, PMB staff did not provide her on-the-job training for her position as PMB Program Support Assistant. The Agency dismissed the entire complaint, pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(2), due to the untimely filing of the formal complaint. It also dismissed claim (a), pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(4), because Complainant raised the matter in an appeal to the Merit System Protection Board. In addition, it dismissed Complainant’s basis of reprisal, pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(1) because she had not identified any prior protected activity or oppositional activity. 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 the notice of the right to do so. The record shows that Complainant received the notice of right to file a formal complaint on October 23, 2020. The notice indicated that Complainant had to file her formal complaint within fifteen (15) calendar days of its receipt. However, the record contains a postmarked envelope indicating that Complainant mailed her formal complaint on November 23, 2020, which is beyond the 15-day filing period. Complainant submits arguments in support of her appeal, including that she was not required to email her formal complaint, she is not an entity of the postal service, and she is not responsible for late mail. However, we find that she has failed to offer adequate justification to warrant an extension of the time limit for filing the complaint. Because we find dismissal of the entire complaint was warranted, we decline to address the Agency’s additional reasons for dismissing any of the claims or bases. Accordingly, the Agency's final decision dismissing Complainant's complaint is AFFIRMED. 2021001545 3 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. 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). 2021001545 4 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 May 25, 2021 Date
