Opinion ID: 786106
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: 1997 Internal EEO Complaint of Discrimination

Text: 4 Mr. Lucas is an African-American male who has been employed with the CTA since 1993. Mr. Lucas was hired as a track inspector, maintaining and repairing sections of track and surrounding right of ways to ensure the tracks were safe for CTA trains. In 1997, Mr. Lucas briefly held a different position within the Track Maintenance Department as a machine operator. For this position, Mr. Lucas trained to operate a Tie Inserter/Extractor machine and a Tie Handler machine. As their names suggest, the Tie Inserter/Extractor enables CTA employees to remove and replace railroad ties, and the Tie Handler machine is used to stack railroad ties prior to their insertion or after their extraction. Mr. Lucas had the most seniority and obtained the highest passing score for employees learning to use the Tie Inserter/Extractor machine; however, he only was permitted to operate that machine three times. Instead, he was often assigned to work on the Tie Handler machine, a machine he considered less desirable. Mr. Lucas asked Senior Roadmaster James Blatz for assignments to operate the inserter/extractor machine, but Blatz denied the request. Mr. Lucas then asked another supervisor, Joe Ryan, but he refused to intervene. Finally, Mr. Lucas asked General Manager Ray Schriks for assistance, but this request also was to no avail. 5 After his unsuccessful attempts to gain experience on the Tie Inserter/Extractor machine, Mr. Lucas filed an internal complaint with the CTA Affirmative Action Unit on September 27, 1997. In that complaint, Mr. Lucas checked the box that indicated that he was alleging race discrimination by his supervisor, Blatz. Mr. Lucas elaborated by explaining that Blatz had denied him the opportunity to operate the inserter/extractor machine, and that General Manager Schriks had responded to Mr. Lucas' complaints about this issue in a rude and discourteous manner. R.22, Ex.13 at 2. Mr. Lucas details the days he was permitted to work on the machine and his efforts in securing more work for himself on the machine he preferred. After the complaint, the CTA's Affirmative Action Unit began its investigation, and, as part of this examination, a CTA investigator met with Blatz. The following day Blatz sent Mr. Lucas home. Mr. Lucas then amended his internal CTA complaint to allege retaliation by Blatz. 6 At the time, Mr. Lucas claimed that Blatz sent him home without an explanation. More recently, in his November 27, 2002 deposition, Mr. Lucas testified that, when Blatz sent him home in September of 1997, Blatz stated: If you don't like it here, nigger, go home. R.28-1, Ex.13 at 70. Additionally, Mr. Lucas' more recent submissions allege that his supervisors repeatedly used racial slurs and the N word. Specifically, in his January 2003 affidavit, Mr. Lucas states that Blatz used racial slurs toward him in 1997. 2 7 Before the CTA completed its internal investigation, Mr. Lucas requested to work the daytime hours as a machine operator; this request was denied. Mr. Lucas then requested a transfer to another position so that he could work days to accommodate his family needs. Sometime around December 1, 1997, the CTA granted this second request by transferring Mr. Lucas back to his original track inspector position, a position in which he was no longer supervised by Blatz. 8 Following Mr. Lucas' transfer, on July 7, 1998, the CTA sent him a letter indicating its investigation supported a finding of cause on his race discrimination and retaliation claims against Blatz and Schriks. After a subsequent review by the Track Maintenance Department, however, CTA Vice President, Pat Harney, told Blatz and Schriks that he disagreed with the finding of cause and decided not to discipline either employee. Mr. Lucas asserts that he was aware of the finding of cause but not aware either that the finding was discredited upon review or that the managers were not disciplined in any way. 9 Mr. Lucas did not file a formal charge with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) or its corresponding state agency within 300 days of the 1997 incident. Mr. Lucas attributes his failure to the fact that the CTA communicated its finding of possible racial discrimination. Mr. Lucas thought he had exposed the injustice in the workplace and therefore accomplished what he set out to do. He maintains that he relied on the CTA's representations that it would investigate and resolve complaints. Had he known that the CTA had failed to take corrective action after its initial conclusion, he continues, he would have filed a charge with the EEOC.