Every Friday on GovExec.com, Legal Briefs reviews cases that involve, or provide valuable lessons to, federal managers. We report on the decisions of a wide range of review panels, including the Merit Systems Protection Board, the Federal Labor Relations Authority and federal courts.
Albert Yuni, a 70-year-old procurement analyst at the Small Business Administration, was diagnosed with heart disease. Due to his condition, Yuni often experienced exhaustion and chest pains. His doctor recommended that Yuni rest for one hour each day. Yuni's supervisor found out that he was visiting the nurse's office for an hour each day and consulted a personnel officer about whether this was considered taking breaks without using leave. The supervisor informed Yuni that he would be charged with sick leave if he continued to go the the health unit to rest and requested that he provide additional medical documentation if he wanted to continue resting each day, despite the fact that he already had a doctor's order in his file.
Yuni provided his supervisor with an updated doctor's order, but the supervisor continued to ask him to provide more evidence, including a written narrative of the history of his medical condition.
So Yuni filed an appeal with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission alleging discrimination based on race (he is white), age and disability. Upon review, an appellant judge found that the SBA neglected its duties to provide reasonable accommodation for Yuni's disability. Rather than talking to Yuni about his condition, the judge said, SBA officials requested unnecessary medical documentation and ultimately forced Yuni to provide his own accommodation.
At the hearing, the judge described the SBA supervisor's attitude as "hostile and contemptuous." The judge ruled that SBA failed to make a good-faith effort to accommodate Yuni's condition.
SBA was ordered to pay for Yuni's attorney fees, refrain from issuing broad requests for medical information and train all personnel specialists on anti-discrimination statutes, particularly with regard to disability discrimination.
Lesson: You're never too old to fight for your rights.
Albert I. Yuni v. Small Business Administration, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (01990458), Dec. 9, 1999.
Fifteen Minutes of Fame
Veronica Van Desteen, a postal carrier at the Montgomery, Texas, post office, sought equal employment opportunity counseling. Afterwards, Van Desteen thought she was treated differently by her boss. One day she arrived 15 minutes late to work and her boss already had a late slip filled out and ready for her signature. Another time, Van Desteen reported to work despite being sick because she couldn't find a substitute carrier. Her boss refused to reduce her workload. Eventually, Van Desteen said, the postmaster began yelling at her and harassing her daily. She filed three formal complaints based on the above incidents.
The Postal Service investigated the complaints and denied that they occurred, so Van Desteen requested a hearing before an EEOC administrative judge. The Postal Sevrice again denied the incidents and testified that Van Desteen was a poor performer. The judge thought it was suspect that the agency refused to produce documents that would have resolved the inconsistent testimony, despite numerous timely requests for them. The EEOC sided with Van Desteen and ordered the Postal Service to reverse its final decision, remove the suspensions on Van Desteen's personnel record and pay her for lost time or benefits related to the suspensions.
Lesson: Bring your evidence or pay the price.
Veronica Van Desteen v. USPS, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (01975928), December 10, 1999.
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