Opinion ID: 2999618
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Mike DiGioa

Text: The first similarly situated individual identified by the plaintiff is Mike DiGioia, a Caucasian Group 9 Custodian employed by the School District. After Mr. Thanongsinh was demoted to the position of Group II Custodian, various custodial tasks previously performed by Mr. Thanongsinh at Oakhill were transferred to DiGioia, who travels among various elementary schools in the area and visits Oakhill once weekly. The plaintiff’s comparison is unavailing. Unlike Mr. Thanongsinh, who before his demotion was a Group V employee, DiGioia is a Group 9 employee. Although in some situations this may be merely a “job title[],” Appellant’s Br. at 30 (internal quotation marks omitted), in this context it is a material distinction. Under the Agreement between the School District and the union, only Group V employees were required to take the Group V certificaNo. 05-3002 19 tion exam; therefore, DiGioia, as a Group 9 employee, never took this exam. He was not “subject to the same standards” as, and cannot be considered “similarly situated” to, Mr. Thanongsinh. Brummet, 414 F.3d at 692.