Opinion ID: 815390
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Application of the McDonnell Douglas Standard

Text: Ms. Tabor’s claim also survives summary judgment under McDonnell Douglas. The parties agree that the first two McDonnell Douglas steps are satisfied: 1) Ms. Tabor established a prima facie case, and 2) Hilti responded by asserting a legitimate nondiscriminatory reason for not promoting her—namely, Mr. Teel and Mr. Perkin’s assessment that her knowledge of tools and time management skills were insufficient. We therefore arrive at the third McDonnell Douglas step. To satisfy this step and overcome summary judgment, Ms. Tabor must show that Hilti’s asserted reason “was not the true reason for the employment decision.” Burdine, 450 U.S. at 256. A plaintiff can meet this burden to show pretext in either of two ways: (1) by showing that the proffered reason is factually false or (2) by showing that discrimination was a primary factor in the employer’s decision, which is often accomplished by revealing “weaknesses, 5 Ms. Tabor argues that another of Mr. Teel’s statements also qualifies as direct evidence of discrimination, specifically his suggestion that married women with children either should not hold, or were less likely to succeed in, positions that require travel. At oral argument, Hilti argued that this statement was not discriminatory because Mr. Teel routinely cautions all employees to consider family obligations before committing to a demanding travel schedule. We do not address whether this particular comment qualifies as direct (rather than circumstantial) evidence of discrimination. The other interview comments satisfy the standard. -15- implausibilities, inconsistencies, incoherencies, or contradictions in the employer’s proffered reason[],” such that a reasonable fact finder could deem the employer’s reason “unworthy of credence.” Garrett v. Hewlett-Packard Co., 305 F.3d 1210, 1217 (10th Cir. 2002) (quotations omitted). The district court found that Mr. Teel’s comments manifested a discriminatory belief that “women . . . have inferior natural skill with tools.” Aplt. Appx. at 2824-25. Nevertheless, the court found that the interviewers’ negative ratings of Ms. Tabor’s qualifications raised “specific and practical” concerns that were “unrelated to generalized concerns over gender.” Id. at 2825. We agree with the district court that Mr. Teel’s comments revealed discriminatory views, but we disagree with its conclusion that Ms. Tabor failed to establish an inference that the negative ratings were related to the discriminatory views. Ms. Tabor has raised a genuine dispute of material fact as to whether Hilti’s proffered reasons for rejecting her are “unworthy of credence.” Garrett, 305 F.3d at 1217 (quotations omitted). A reasonable jury could infer that the negative ratings the interviewers assigned Ms. Tabor did not represent objective individualized assessments of her qualifications but rather a reflection of the discriminatory views Mr. Teel expressed during the interview. See id. (“A plaintiff can withstand summary judgment by presenting evidence sufficient to raise a genuine dispute of material fact regarding whether the defendant’s articulated reason for the adverse employment action is pretextual.”); see also Simms v. Dep’t of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Servs., 165 -16- F.3d 1321, 1328 (10th Cir. 1999) (evidence of pretext may include use of subjective criteria). For example, the low rating given to Ms. Tabor on knowledge of the construction business relates closely to Mr. Teel’s expressed belief that women generally have inferior knowledge of tools. Similarly, the low rating in time management relates to Mr. Teel’s expressed concern that she would not be able to handle the workload because she was a wife and mother. As Ms. Tabor argues, a reasonable jury could infer that Mr. Teel’s discriminatory views are “mirrored in his ratings” of Ms. Tabor. Aplt. Br. at 53. Hilti claims that its alleged choice to hire a single mother (Ms. Musso) for the Oklahoma City position proves that it did not discriminate against Ms. Tabor. One problem with this argument is that Ms. Tabor has raised a genuine dispute regarding whether Ms. Musso was actually the person hired for the Oklahoma City Interior Finish position: It is undisputed that Ms. Tabor applied for an Interior Finish Account Manager position in Oklahoma City, and that she did not apply for a position in Tulsa. It is also undisputed that a male candidate, Mr. Kidwell, was hired for an Interior Finish Account Manager position in Oklahoma City and that Ms. Musso was hired for an Account Manager position in Tulsa. Hilti explains that it relocated the Oklahoma City position for which Ms. Tabor applied to Tulsa and offered it to Ms. Musso. Then, in an unrelated decision, it created a -17- new, separate Oklahoma City position that it offered to Mr. Kidwell.6 Under this logic, Hilti insists, Ms. Musso (and not Mr. Kidwell) was selected over Ms. Tabor and thus any inference of gender discrimination is impossible. Perhaps this explanation is true, but that is for a factfinder to determine. A reasonable jury could reject this explanation and infer that Hilti’s proffered reasons for rejecting Ms. Tabor are unworthy of credence and therefore pretextual.