Opinion ID: 178472
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Post-Termination Claims

Text: After the district court dismissed his termination and pre-termination claims, Stiefel filed an amended complaint alleging that Bechtel violated the ADA in refusing to rehire him, despite promises that certain Bechtel employees made at the time of his termination to help him get back to work when his cast came off. As evidence of Bechtel's unwillingness to rehire him, Stiefel points to statements by Bechtel employees that he would not be allowed to return to work without a full medical release. Stiefel acknowledges that Bechtel accommodated other disabled employees but maintains that Bechtel has discriminated against him because of his disability by refusing to rehire him and accommodate his disability by offering him a light-duty position. Stiefel further asserts that Bechtel's alleged refusal to rehire him was motivated out of a desire to retaliate against him for having requested accommodation. Pursuant to a collective bargaining agreement with Local 229 of the International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental, and Reinforcing Iron Workers Union (the Union), of which Stiefel was a member, Bechtel hired ironworkers based on referrals from the Union. The Union referred workers to Bechtel from the top of its out-of-work list. Workers moved to the top of the out-of-work list by attending roll call meetings at the hiring hall. After being laid off, Stiefel delayed adding his name to the Union's out-of-work list for three or four months. After joining the list, he never advanced to the top because he missed roll calls, which he said was because of his need for medical treatment, including doctor appointments, surgery, and physical therapy. He also argues that attending roll calls would have been an exercise in futility in light of statements made by Bechtel employees that the company would not rehire Stiefel without a restriction-free medical release.