Opinion ID: 773251
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: The Rehiring Decision As Evidence of Pretext

Text: 96 Pretext may be established 'by showing weaknesses, implausibilities, inconsistencies, incoherencies, or contradictions in the employer's proffered legitimate reasons' such that a fact finder could 'infer that the employer did not act for the asserted non-discriminatory reasons.' Santiago-Ramos, 217 F.3d at 56 (quoting Hodgens, 144 F.3d at 168). For present purposes, we shall assume, without deciding, that there may be circumstances in which the decision to rehire a discharged employee constitutes competent evidence of pretext, at least insofar as the rehiring plainly undermined the proffered justification for the original discharge. Cf. Nitschke v. McDonnell Douglas Corp., 68 F.3d 249, 252 (8th Cir. 1995) (evidence of employee's competence, as demonstrated by employer's decision to rehire, would have constituted evidence of pretext had incompetence been the proffered ground for original discharge). Even so, the summary judgment record came up well short of the required evidentiary support for Straughn's contention that the decision to rehire her in a different capacity reflected an abandonment of Delta's original position that she had misled Giglio in the first instance. 97 Straughn insists that the decision to rehire her, after her internal appeal, indicates that upon considering her version of the encounter with Giglio, Delta management must have realized that Giglio had misled McColly and Ealey regarding Straughn's responses to Giglio's inquiries. McColly, one of the two Delta supervisors who participated in the internal appeal, explained the rationale for recommending Straughn's reinstatement as follows: 98 [D]espite the fact that I . . . believed that [Straughn] had still done something wrong, and furthermore that she knew she had done something wrong, I did believe, after meeting with her, that there was a considerable amount of confusion in the administration of the workers' compensation, or that it could have been handled better. And Ms. Straughn did have a good record, and several years with the company, so we decided that we should recommend . . . another chance. 99 (Emphasis added). 100 Asked to clarify what she meant by confusion, McColly stated that she had neither concluded that Straughn was confused by Giglio's questions, nor that Straughn had retained the workers' compensation payments unwittingly. Instead, McColly explained: I still believe that Ms. Straughn very likely knew that she had not been entitled to the payments, emphasizing that the appeals process had in no sense caused her to question the story that Lou Giglio had been telling . . . [and] that ultimately led to [Straughn's] termination. 101 Plainly, then, the recommendation to rehire Straughn was made notwithstanding McColly's earnest belief that it was very likely that Straughn knowingly had done something wrong. Furthermore, McColly stated that though the workers' compensation disbursements should have been managed more efficiently and that some actual confusion had indeed resulted, Delta nonetheless had been justified in discharging Straughn due to her repeated attempts to mislead. 102 Thus, there is no evidentiary support for the contention that the appeals board hearing prompted McColly to conclude either that Giglio had misrepresented Straughn's responses or that Straughn had been wrongfully discharged. Instead, the record is clear that McColly recommended a second chance based on Straughn's overall employment record, notwithstanding ample grounds for the dismissal. Accordingly, not only does the decision to rehire Straughn provide no support for the claim that the proffered reason for discharging her was unworthy of credence, Burdine, 450 U.S. at 256, it strongly evidences an absence of any forbidden animus on the part of Delta. 103 Next, we turn to the contention that Straughn's demotion to a position entailing reduced compensation and responsibilities, notwithstanding the unconditional reinstatement recommended by Delta management, demonstrates that Giglio harbored discriminatory motives in recommending her discharge in the first instance. The record reflects that McColly transmitted a memorandum to Director of Equal Opportunity Richard Ealey summarizing a discussion which had taken place during the appeals process, as follows: Mr. Stevenson and I recommend [Straughn's] request for reinstatement be granted and that she be required to reimburse Delta for the overpayment. 104 Subsequently, McColly explained that her recommendation to Ealey was simply that Straughn be reinstated, whereas the particulars relating to her reinstatement, i.e., position and salary, were left to others. Furthermore, Giglio denied any role in determining that Straughn should be demoted after her rehiring and Straughn neither identified nor presented any evidence to the contrary. Thus, Straughn's rehiring and placement in a position entailing reduced salary and responsibilities provide no support for the claim that the stated reason for her discharge was pretextual. 105