Opinion ID: 194852
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Hector L. Encarnacion Matos

Text: Encarnacion was dismissed from his regular position, as a Computer Operator I, in August 1985. The dismissal letter stated that he lacked the minimum qualifications for the position, which defendants characterized at trial and on appeal as requiring an associate degree in accounting or computer opera- most other appellants. According to her undisputed testimony, she merely participated at the polling places, and on the marches in [her] spare time, and served as secretary for the electoral board in 1984. 11There are important public policy considerations at stake in these circumstances. First, legitimate efforts by newlyelected officials to impose fiscal constraints and to foster operating efficiencies should not be hamstrung. See Marin-Piazza v. Aponte-Roque, 873 F.2d 432, 434 (1st Cir. 1989) ([W]e are inclined to give a certain amount of leeway to personnel decisions of new administration officials which implement a facially politically neutral reorganization of structure or procedure.). Newly-elected officials, however well meaning, might be deterred from needed measures to effect economies and efficiencies in governmental operations if a discharged employee's political affiliation alone were enough to carry her claim to the jury. Second, though there was ample opportunity to raise a genuine factual dispute regarding the legitimacy of the defendants' austerity program, the defendants demonstrated, without rebut- tal, that the City has operated for at least six years with a vastly streamlined messenger staff. 19 tion. The job description called for a high school diploma, supplemented by courses in mechanized accounting or programming and one year of experience in that field, or [a] combination of academic background and experience. Thus, contrary to defendants' mischaracterization at trial, the job description did not require post-secondary school courses sufficient to qualify Encarnacion for an associate degree. Moreover, although Encarnacion conceded at trial that his post-secondary school courses were not in accounting or programming, and that he had no experience in computer programming prior to his appointment, he had acquired two years' working experience on the job before he was dismissed in 1985, during which time he had received several excellent job performance evaluations. See id. at 312-13 (noting that jury could credit circumstantial evidence that plaintiff performed her duties very well); Estrada-Izquierdo, 850 F.2d at 14 (finding probative the circumstantial evidence that plaintiff successfully carried out her job for many years). Encarnacion's job description was flexible enough to permit the jury to determine that he possessed the necessary qualifications, and that the stated reason for his dismissal was pretextual.