14th Court of Appeals holds employee does not have to file TWC charge of retaliation if the employee asserts retaliation for filing discrimination charge
Metropolitan Transit Authority of Harris County, Texas v. Viola M. Douglas 14-17-00176-CV (Tex. App— Houston [14th Dist.] February 27, 2018)
This is an employment discrimination and retaliation case where the 14th District Court of Appeals affirmed the denial of the employer’s plea to the jurisdiction.
Douglas is a lieutenant with the Metro Police Department (“Metro”). She applied for one of two available captain positions. Metro had procedures to use an outside agency to do competency assessments of candidates, but the Chief, at the time, decided to use a five-person panel of Metro employees. The panel scored Douglas the highest of the candidates. The Chief then interviewed the candidates and promoted both male candidates. Douglas was not promoted. Douglas filed a discrimination charge with the Texas Workforce Commission Civil Rights Division (“TWC”) but after 180 days without a right-to-sue letter, Douglas filed suit. After her charge was filed, Douglas asserts the incoming Chief (who was a female) had her performance review lowered. So, she added a retaliation charge to the suit. Metro filed its plea to the jurisdiction, which the trial court denied.
An appeal is moot when there is no longer a live controversy between the parties and appellate relief would be futile. Live controversies exist so the claims are not moot. An adverse employment action in the context of a retaliation claim is not limited to conduct that constitutes ultimate employment decisions. Actionable conduct includes any actions that a reasonable employee would find materially adverse. A downgrade of an employee’s performance evaluation may constitute an adverse employment action if it might have dissuaded a reasonable worker from making or supporting a charge of discrimination. As a result, Douglas jurisdictionally asserted an adverse employment action. Douglas argues she was not required to exhaust her administrative remedies because the trial court has ancillary jurisdiction over retaliation claims that grow out of an earlier discrimination charge. The court analyzed the different U.S. Supreme Court opinions on this type of argument. Ultimately, it held that a plaintiff cannot rely upon a continuing violation theory for retaliatory conduct which occurred prior to the original charge, but when the retaliatory conduct is allegedly in response to the original charge (i.e. retaliation grows out of a discrimination charge filed), the plaintiff need not exhaust a new set of administrative remedies. As a result, the trial court properly denied the plea.
If you would like to read this opinion click here. Panel consists of Justice Jamison, Busby and Donovan. Justice Jamison delivered the opinion of the court. The attorney listed for Douglas is Linda D. King. The attorney listed for Metropolitan Transit Authority is Daniel Nicholas Ramirez and Hao Pham Le.
