Opinion ID: 2737823
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Fuller’s termination claims

Text: Fuller’s claims relating to his termination do not fare as well. He argues, alternatively, that his termination was in retaliation for the 2010 charge that he filed with the Michigan Department of Civil Rights and the EEOC regarding the Bridge Authority’s failure to promote him, that his termination was in retaliation for his September 20, 2011 internal complaint regarding his coworkers’ racist comments, and that his termination was outright discriminatory. The Bridge Authority responds that it terminated Fuller because he knowingly made false statements to obtain unemployment compensation to which he was not entitled. Fuller attempts to overcome this explanation by arguing, first, that his termination came just seven days after he filed a complaint with Bridge Services Manager Steiner regarding the - 19 - Case No. 13-2717 Fuller v. The Michigan Department of Transportation negative comments made by three coworkers regarding his race. Second, Fuller argues that another employee, Dean O’Brien (again, not to be confused with Bridge Safety Supervisor Dan O’Brien) engaged in similar conduct with regard to claiming unemployment benefits, but was not terminated until two months after that conduct came to light. He likewise argues that Melissa Brown (again, not to be confused with Personnel Liaison Janet Brown) engaged in similar conduct and was found to have committed fraud on January 11, 2012, but was not terminated until January 23, 2012. Fuller’s protestations that he was fired more promptly than Dean O’Brien or Melissa Brown fall short of establishing that the Bridge Authority fired him for reasons other than his own unemployment-benefits fraud. Indeed, the fact that the Bridge Authority fired multiple people for unemployment-benefits fraud suggests that this was its true motivation. The fact that one employee “lasted a few weeks longer than another, when both were eventually terminated, is not the stuff of a compelling discrimination claim.” Gaffney v. Potter, 345 F. App’x 991, 993 (6th Cir. 2009). Moreover, we note that Melissa Brown’s termination came just 12 days after she was found to have committed fraud, which is in fact a shorter time period than the 19-day gap between the September 8, 2011 determination that Fuller had committed the same offense and his discharge on September 27, 2011. Fuller’s argument is thus not only without merit, but fails even on its own terms. Fuller’s argument that he was fired shortly after the filing of his internal complaint likewise fails to raise a genuine dispute regarding whether the Bridge Authority’s stated reasons are pretextual because temporal proximity alone is insufficient to create such a dispute. See Asmo v. Keane, Inc., 471 F.3d 588, 598 (6th Cir. 2006) (holding that “temporal proximity between [an employee’s protected activity] and [the employer’s] decision to terminate her cannot - 20 - Case No. 13-2717 Fuller v. The Michigan Department of Transportation alone prove pretext”). Although temporal proximity alone can be sufficient to establish a prima facie case that an employee’s termination is causally connected to protected activity, Montell v. Diversified Clinical Servs., Inc., 757 F.3d 497, 505 (6th Cir. 2014), this evaluation is distinct from determining whether the proffered reason—in this case unemployment-benefits fraud—is pretextual. See Id. at 508 (“Having concluded that Montell has presented a prima facie case of retaliation, we turn to the next steps of the burden-shifting analysis.”). As this court has previously stated, “[p]retext is a commonsense inquiry: did the employer fire the employee for the stated reason or not? This requires a court to ask whether the plaintiff has produced evidence that casts doubt on the employer’s explanation, and, if so, how strong it is.” Chen v. Dow Chem. Co., 580 F.3d 394, 400 n.4 (6th Cir. 2009). Fuller cites no evidence, other than temporal proximity, to show that he was fired for any reason other than his unemployment-benefits fraud. He therefore raises no genuine dispute of material fact as to the reason for his discharge.