Opinion ID: 375358
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: bases for relief

Text: 6 The plaintiff in a section 706 suit, such as this, must carry the initial burden of establishing a prima facie case of racial discrimination. McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792, 802, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 1824, 32 L.Ed.2d 668 (1973). Although Green was a hiring case, its four factors for establishing a prima facie case have recently been extended to discharge situations by this circuit. Burdine v. Texas Department of Community Affairs, 608 F.2d 563 (5th Cir. 1979); Marks v. Prattco, Inc., 607 F.2d 1153 (5th Cir. 1979). The plaintiff must show that (1) he belongs to a group protected by the statute; (2) he was qualified for the job from which he was suspended and not rehired; (3) he was terminated; and (4) after his termination, the employer hired a person not in plaintiff's protected class, or retained those, having comparable or lesser qualifications, not in plaintiff's protected class. See Green, 411 U.S. at 802, 93 S.Ct. at 1824. An unanswered Green prima facie showing results in an inference of discriminatory animus in these disparate treatment cases. Furnco Constructions Corp. v. Waters, 438 U.S. 567, 579-80, 98 S.Ct. 2943, 2950-51, 57 L.Ed.2d 957 (1978). 7 Once the plaintiff has established a prima facie case, the employer must articulate some legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for the termination. Board of Trustees v. Sweeny, 439 U.S. 24, 99 S.Ct. 295, 58 L.Ed.2d 216 (1978); Waters, 438 U.S. at 577-78, 98 S.Ct. at 2949-50 (1978); Green, 411 U.S. at 802, 93 S.Ct. at 1824. Burdine, 608 F.2d at 567, establishes that we require the employer to prove nondiscriminatory reasons for the discharge by a preponderance of the evidence. The employer is not required to prove absence of a discriminatory motive. Sweeny, 439 U.S. at 25, 99 S.Ct. at 295. 8 If the employer effectively rebuts the plaintiff's charge, the plaintiff must be afforded a fair opportunity to establish that the employer's asserted justification is, in fact, a ruse for a racially discriminatory decision. Green, 411 U.S. at 804, 805, 807, 93 S.Ct. at 1825, 1826. However, Title VII is not violated simply because an impermissible factor plays some part in the employer's decision. The forbidden taint need not be the sole basis for the action to warrant relief, but it must be a significant factor. Garcia v. Gloor, 609 F.2d 156, 160 (5th Cir. 1980). 9 Ultimately, the burden of persuasion rests on the plaintiff, who must establish the statutory violation by a preponderance of the evidence. Jepsen v. Florida Board of Regents, 610 F.2d 1379, 1382 (5th Cir. 1980); Causey v. Ford Motor Co., 516 F.2d 416, 420 n.6 (5th Cir. 1975). If this burden is met, our traditional reticence to intervene in university affairs cannot be allowed to undermine our statutory duty to remedy the wrong. Jepsen, 610 F.2d at 1383.
10 When section 1981 is used as a parallel basis for relief with section 706 of Title VII against disparate treatment in employment, its elements appear to be identical to those of section 706. Garcia, 609 F.2d at 164; Blum v. Gulf Oil Corp., 597 F.2d 936, 938 (5th Cir. 1979); see also Johnson v. Alexander, 572 F.2d 1219, 1223 n.3 (and cases cited therein) (8th Cir. 1978), cert. denied, 439 U.S. 986, 99 S.Ct. 579, 58 L.Ed.2d 658 (1978). 11 There is no question that under section 1981, the plaintiff must establish purposeful discrimination equivalent to that required by those alleging fourteenth amendment dereliction. Grigsby v. North Miss. Medical Center, Inc., 586 F.2d 457, 460-61 (5th Cir. 1978); Williams v. DeKalb County, 582 F.2d 2 (5th Cir. 1978). But when section 1981 is merely used as a companion remedy provision to section 706, we hold that such intent should be inferred in the same manner as Waters said it is inferred under section 706.
12 Section 1983 serves as a basis for relief for violations of federal law under color of state law. Insofar as it is used as a parallel remedy for transgression of section 1981 and section 706 of Title VII rights, the elements of the causes of action do not differ from those discussed above. The only other federal law that Whiting suggests has been trammeled by JSU's actions is the fourteenth amendment. Despite JSU's interpretation, we do not understand Whiting to complain that he was denied procedural due process. Rather, he claims his termination on racial grounds offends equal protection. 13 No person may be suspended without pay and refused contract renewal for constitutionally impermissible reasons. Perry v. Sindermann, 408 U.S. 593, 597, 92 S.Ct. 2694, 2697, 33 L.Ed.2d 570 (1972); Carmichael v. Chambers County Board of Education, 581 F.2d 95, 97 (5th Cir. 1978). Race, of course, cannot constitutionally serve as the motivating factor for the decision. U.S.Const., amend. XIV; see Lee v. Macon County Board of Education, 453 F.2d 1104 (5th Cir. 1971); Knowles v. Board of Public Instruction of Leon County, Florida, 405 F.2d 1206 (5th Cir. 1969). 14 In order to establish a violation of the equal protection clause, the plaintiff must prove a racially discriminatory purpose or motive. Arlington Heights v. Metropolitan Housing Development Corp., 429 U.S. 252, 256, 97 S.Ct. 555, 558, 50 L.Ed.2d 450 (1977); Washington v. Davis, 426 U.S. 229, 240, 96 S.Ct. 2040, 2047, 48 L.Ed.2d 597 (1976); Nevett v. Sides, 571 F.2d 209, 217-18 (5th Cir. 1978), petition for cert. filed, 48 U.S.L.W. 3087 (U.S. Aug. 21, 1979) (No. 78-492). If the plaintiff shows that race was a substantial or motivating factor in the decision to terminate him, the burden shifts to the defendant to show by a preponderance of the evidence that it would have reached the same result even in the absence of the reprobated factor. Mt. Healthy School District Board of Education v. Doyle, 429 U.S. 274, 285-87, 97 S.Ct. 568, 575-76, 50 L.Ed.2d 471 (1977). 15