Opinion ID: 769647
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Did Jahnke's harassment culminate in a tangible employment action?

Text: 21 To prevail under a sexual harassment claim without showing that the harassment was severe or pervasive, the employee must prove the following: 1) that the employee was a member of a protected class; 2) that the employee was subjected to unwelcomed sexual harassment in the form of sexual advances or requests for sexual favors; 3) that the harassment complained of was on the basis of sex; 4) that the employee's submission to the unwelcomed advances was an express or implied condition for receiving job benefits or that the employee's refusal to submit to the supervisor's sexual demands resulted in a tangible job detriment; and 5) the existence of respondeat superior liability. See Kauffman v. Allied Signal, Inc., Autolite Div., 970 F.2d 178, 186 (6th Cir. 1992). 22 The district court rejected Bowman's claim that he suffered a tangible job detriment by the removal of his responsibilities as Coordinator. The court reasoned that there was no tangible employment action for the following reasons: 1) Bowman's removal from the position was not a demotion because the Coordinator position was not an actual position at the University but, rather, merely a title provided to a person which describes the duties he or she was performing, and was not accompanied by a reduction in salary; 2) Bowman had not offered any evidence showing that the Coordinator position was viewed as more prestigious than the full-time teaching position in which he remained; and 3) the University reinstated Bowman to his position as Coordinator. 23 While a permanent loss of the Coordinator position may well have constituted a tangible job detriment, an issue we need not decide, it is clear that Bowman did not suffer an adverse employment action 5 by the very temporary loss of his position as Coordinator. In Hollins v. Atlantic Co., 188 F.3d 652 (6th Cir. 1999), the court noted the requirements for establishing a materially adverse employment action: 24 [A] materially adverse change in the terms and conditions of employment must be more disruptive than a mere inconvenience or an alteration of job responsibilities. A materially adverse change might be indicated by a termination of employment, a demotion evidenced by a decrease in wage or salary, a less distinguished title, a material loss of benefits, significantly diminished materialresponsibilities, or other indices that might be unique to a particular situation. 25 Id. at 662 (citation omitted). The Sixth Circuit has consistently held that de minimis employment actions are not materially adverse and, thus, not actionable. See, e.g., Jacklyn v. Schering-Plough HealthCare Prod., 176 F.3d 921, 930 (6th Cir. 1999) (holding that neither requiring plaintiff to work at home while she was recovering from out-patient surgery, nor rejecting computer expenses that previously had been approved, were materially adverse employment actions); Jackson v. City of Columbus, 194 F.3d 737 (6th Cir. 1999) (holding that police chief's suspension with pay was not an adverse employment action); Hollins, 188 F.3d at 662 (6th Cir. 1999) (holding that [s]atisfactory ratings in an overall evaluation, although lower than a previous evaluation, will not constitute an adverse employment action where the employee receives a merit raise); Kocsis v. Multi-Care Management, 97 F.3d 876, 885 (6th Cir. 1996) (holding that reassignments without salary or work changes do not ordinarily constitute adverse employment decisions in employment discrimination claims). 26 Even if we assume that the loss of the Coordinator position constitutes a significant change in employment status, there is no tangible employment action in this case because the very temporary nature of the employment action in question makes it a non-materially adverse employment action. Similar to cases where the employment action is not significant enough to rise to the level of a materially adverse employment action, cases where the employment action, while perhaps being materially adverse if permanent, is very temporary also do not constitute materially adverse employment actions. This principle was recognized in Kauffman v. Allied Signal, Inc., Autolite Div., 970 F.2d 178 (6th Cir. 1992), where the court indicated that even if a tangible job detriment has been suffered, there may be a de minimis exception for temporary actions or where further remedial action is moot and no economic loss occurred. See id. at 187. See also Yates v. Avco Corp., 819 F.2d 630, 638 (6th Cir. 1987) (holding that there was no adverse employment action where temporary transfer did not result in loss of salary or benefits). The removal of Bowman from the Coordinator position for only approximately ten days with no loss of income is properly characterized as a de minimis employment action that does not rise to the level of a materially adverse employment decision. 6 27