Opinion ID: 2974407
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Adverse Employment Actions – In General

Text: The ADEA prohibits federal employers, including the Postal Service, from discriminating against an employee “based on age.” 29 U.S.C. § 633a. Title VII likewise prohibits discrimination based on, among other things, an individual’s gender. 42 U.S.C. § 2000e-16(a). The legal standards governing both types of discrimination are similar. See Kocsis v. Multi-Care Mgmt., Inc., 97 F.3d 876, 885 (6th Cir. 1996). -4- No. 05-6311 Freeman v. Potter A plaintiff may establish age- or gender-based discrimination in two different ways. He may offer direct evidence of the employer’s discriminatory motive by producing “evidence, which, if believed, requires the conclusion that unlawful discrimination was at least a motivating factor in the employer’s actions.” Mitchell v. Vanderbilt Univ., 389 F.3d 177, 181 (6th Cir. 2004) (quoting Wexler v. White’s Fine Furniture, Inc., 317 F.3d 564, 570 (6th Cir.2003) (en banc)). If he cannot come forward with direct evidence of a discriminatory motive, he may offer indirect and circumstantial evidence of such a motive under the familiar McDonnell-Douglas burden-shifting approach. Id. (citation omitted). Under the latter approach, the employee must show that (1) he is a member of a protected class; (2) he was subjected to an adverse employment action; (3) he was qualified for the position sought; and (4) he was treated differently from similarly situated employees outside the protected class. McClain v. NorthWest Cmty. Corr. Ctr. Judicial Corr. Bd., 440 F.3d 320, 332 (6th Cir. 2005). The elements of a prima facie case are fact-specific and differ from case to case. Jones v. Sch. Dist. of Philadelphia, 198 F.3d 403, 411 (3d Cir. 1999). The sole issue presented to us on appeal is whether Freeman has offered sufficient evidence to create a genuine issue of material fact that he suffered an adverse employment action. An adverse employment action “constitutes a significant change in employment status, such as hiring, firing, failing to promote, reassignment with significantly different responsibilities, or a decision causing a significant change in benefits.” Burlington Indus., Inc. v. Ellerth, 524 U.S. 742, 761 (1998) (citations omitted). Such action usually “inflicts direct economic harm.” Id. at 762. An employment action must amount to “a materially adverse change” in the terms or conditions of employment to be actionable. Kocsis, 97 F.3d at 885; see also Mitchell, 389 F.3d at 182. The action “must be more -5- No. 05-6311 Freeman v. Potter disruptive than a mere inconvenience or an alteration of job responsibilities.” Kocsis, 97 F.3d at 886 (internal quotations omitted). A “de minimis employment” action is “not materially adverse and, thus, not actionable.” Bowman v. Shawnee State Univ., 220 F.3d 456, 462 (6th Cir. 2000). In other words, a “bruised ego” caused by trivial employment actions is not sufficient. Kocsis, 97 F.3d at 886 (citing Flaherty v. Gas Research Inst., 315 F.3d 451, 456 (7th Cir. 1994)). Yet, an employee need not have suffered one of the “ultimate employment actions” listed above (e.g., termination, demotion, failure to promote, etc.) to have a viable claim of discrimination. A material adverse action may consist of a less distinguished title, diminished options for advancement, or other unique indices. Bowman, 220 F.3d at 461-62; Hollins v. Atl. Co., 188 F.3d 652, 662 (6th Cir. 1999). Importantly, however, an individual’s “subjective impression concerning the desirability of one position over another” is insufficient to render an employer’s action materially adverse. Mitchell, 389 F.3d at 183; see also Policastro v. Nw. Airlines, Inc., 297 F.3d 535, 539 (6th Cir. 2002). Rather, we determine whether a particular employment action was “objectively intolerable to a reasonable person.” Policastro, 297 F.3d at 539; see also O’Neal v. City of Chicago, 392 F.3d 909, 913 (7th Cir. 2004) (explaining that an employee’s “purely subjective preferences for one position over another” does not “justify trundling out the heavy artillery of federal antidiscrimination law” (internal quotations omitted)); Brown v. Brody, 199 F.3d 446, 457 (D.C. Cir. 1999) (explaining that an employee must suffer “objectively tangible harm” to have a viable discrimination claim). In short, the action must have a “significant detrimental effect” on the employee’s status, Boone v. Goldin, 178 F.3d 253, 256 (4th Cir. 1999), as evidenced by objective factors, not subjective -6- No. 05-6311 Freeman v. Potter impressions. C. Did Freeman Suffer an Adverse Employment Action? To support his claim, Freeman points to a single action by the Postal Service: its decision not to transfer him to the Sewanee Postmaster position. As in prior cases involving a request for a new position within the same employer organization, we view Freeman’s claim as one grounded on a failure to promote/transfer, as opposed to one based on a failure to hire.1 See, e.g., Browning v. Dep’t 1