Opinion ID: 770748
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The Position of Deputy Commissioner

Text: 11 The City of Cleveland originally posted the Deputy Commissioner position in the fall of 1994. Eric Myles (a black man) was selected to fill the position. It is undisputed that Nguyen did not apply for the position when it was posted. Because the City had suffered some unexpected budget cuts, funding for the position was not available in 1994. When funds were actually acquired for the position, in 1995, the department again offered the position to Mr. Myles. Myles accepted and assumed the position in October, 1995. 12 The district court held that Nguyen failed to establish a prima facie discrimination case with respect to the Deputy Commissioner position because, although he met three of the four prongs required, he did not demonstrate that he had applied for the position or that his failure to apply should be excused under Wanger v. G.A. Gray Co.,872 F.2d 142 (6th Cir. 1989). Specifically, the district court explained: 13 The City also argues that plaintiff cannot make out a prima facie case for the position of Deputy Commissioner because the plaintiff did not apply for the position. . . . The Sixth Circuit, however, has recognized that in certain situations it is not necessary for a Title VII plaintiff to apply for a position in order to assert a claim. . . . Wanger v. G.A. Gray Co., 872 F.2d 142 (6th Cir. 1989). Plaintiff admitted in his deposition that he never applied for the position of Deputy Commissioner. (Nguyen Dep. at 186.) Relying on Wanger, plaintiff contends that his application was not necessary because the City did not publish notice of [the] vacant position, and the record is clear that Plaintiff would have applied had he known of the posting, or that submission of his application would have been fruitless. (Pltf. Opp. at 5.) 14 The Court does not find that plaintiff has satisfied the application requirement. The plaintiff does not submit authority demonstrating that it was necessary for the City to post the position a second time when funding for it became available. Even if it were necessary for the City to repost the position, the plaintiff has not submitted evidence demonstrating that he met the more lenient application requirement articulated in Wanger. Plaintiff states that the record is clear that [he] would have applied had he known of the posting. However, plaintiff points to no evidence supporting that statement. Plaintiff points to no evidence demonstrating that he showed more than a general interest in the position. In addition, plaintiff points to no evidence supporting his assertion that his application for the position would have been fruitless. Thus, plaintiff has failed to demonstrate a prima facie case as to his nonpromotion to the position of Deputy Commissioner. 15 We conclude that the grant of summary judgment in favor of the City on this claim was proper. For Nguyen to establish a prima facie case with respect to this position, he needed to demonstrate that he applied for the position in 1994 when it originally became vacant and the City undertook the selection process. It is undisputed, however, that in 1994, when the position was originally posted, Mr. Nguyen did not apply for it. As the district court noted, Nguyen did not submit any authority to demonstrate that the City had an obligation to post the position a second time when funding eventually became available. In his brief on appeal, Nguyen contends that he did not need to demonstrate that the City's failure to post the position a second time was discriminatory; rather, he says, he needed only to demonstrate that he would have expressed interest in the position had he been aware of its availability. The district court was correct in its finding, however, that Nguyen presented no evidence to that effect. We think that the district court was correct in concluding that even if the more lenient standard of Wanger were applicable here--an issue which it is not necessary for us to determine, given the record in this case--Nguyen failed to satisfy the requirement that he had applied for the position.