Opinion ID: 786417
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Age Discrimination under the ADEA

Text: 42 According to Coomer, the district court erred in entering summary judgment on his ADEA claim because, contrary to the district court's determinations, there were issues of fact as to whether he made out a prima facie case of age discrimination and whether the articulated reason for not making the requested lump sum to Coomer was pretextual. 43 It is unlawful under the ADEA for an employer to fail or refuse to hire or to discharge any individual or otherwise discriminate against any individual with respect to his compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment, because of such individual's age. 29 U.S.C. § 623(a)(1). To establish a claim under the ADEA a plaintiff may either produce direct evidence of age discrimination, or rely upon circumstantial evidence that would permit an inference of discrimination under the burden-shifting method outlined in McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green, 411 U.S. 792, 93 S.Ct. 1817, 36 L.Ed.2d 668 (1973), and Texas Dep't of Cmty Affairs v. Burdine, 450 U.S. 248, 101 S.Ct. 1089, 67 L.Ed.2d 207 (1981). Hedrick v. Western Reserve Care Sys., 355 F.3d 444, 459 (6th Cir.2004); Kline v. Tennessee Valley Auth., 128 F.3d 337, 348-49 (6th Cir.1997). 44 To establish a prima facie case of age discrimination under the ADEA, a plaintiff must come forward with evidence that: (1) he was at least 40 years old at the time of the alleged discrimination; (2) he was subjected to an adverse employment action; (3) he was otherwise qualified for the position; and (4) after he was rejected, a substantially younger applicant was selected. Burzynski v. Cohen, 264 F.3d 611, 622 (6th Cir.2001) (citing Barnett v. Dep't of Veterans Affairs, 153 F.3d 338, 341 (6th Cir.1998)). The fourth element may be satisfied by showing that similarly situated non-protected employees were treated more favorably. Talley v. Bravo Pitino Rest., 61 F.3d 1241, 1246 (6th Cir.1995). If the plaintiff successfully establishes a prima facie case, the burden of production shifts to the defendant to articulate a non-discriminatory reason for its adverse employment action. Burzynski, 264 F.3d at 622. If the defendant comes up with such a reason, the plaintiff must then demonstrate by a preponderance of the evidence that the defendant's proffered reason was a pretext for age discrimination. Id. 45 The district court held that defendants were entitled to summary judgment on Coomer's ADEA claim because Coomer was not similarly situated to Rowan and because Coomer could not show that the Hospital's proffered reason for treating Coomer differently was pretextual. Because we find that Coomer failed to produce any evidence that would suggest that the reason for the disparate treatment was pretextual, we will not address the issue of whether Coomer made out a prima facie case of age discrimination. 46 In Manzer v. Diamond Shamrock Chem. Co., 29 F.3d 1078 (6th Cir.1994), we explained what evidence a plaintiff must adduce in order to show that an employer's alleged legitimate reason for its adverse action against the plaintiff was a mere pretext: 47 To make a submissible case on the credibility of his employer's explanation, the plaintiff is required to show by a preponderance of the evidence either (1) that the proffered reasons had no basis in fact, (2) that the proffered reasons did not actually motivate his discharge, or (3) that they were insufficient to motivate discharge. 48 Id. at 1084. See also Hedrick, 355 F.3d at 460. Summary judgment is appropriate when the plaintiff fails to produce evidence from which a jury could reasonably conclude that the employer's reasons were pretextual. Wixson v. Dowagiac Nursing Home, 87 F.3d 164, 171 (6th Cir.1996). 49 The Hospital produced evidence that it amended the Plan to allow a lump sum distribution to Rowan because the amount above the allowable lump sum was de minimis, and because they supported Rowan's use of the funds. The Hospital explained that it placed a cap on the lump sum settlement under the Plan because it was concerned that if an employee took a large lump sum distribution, that employee might spend the monies and still look to the Hospital for long-term retirement benefits. Rowan's lump sum settlement was not for a large amount and did not raise those concerns. In addition, the Hospital explained that its decision to amend the Plan in favor of Rowan was influenced by the fact that Rowan was an African-American and he planned to use the lump sum distribution to complete his medical education to become an orthopedic surgeon. The Hospital noted that there was a shortage of African-American orthopedic surgeons, and the Hospital hoped that Rowan would eventually return to the Hospital to practice medicine. By contrast, Coomer's pension had an actuarial equivalent of approximately $116,000, a far larger amount than Rowan's, and Coomer did not advise the Hospital of any special circumstances to support his request. 50 The factors cited by the Hospital were reasonable factors for differentiating between Rowan and Coomer in the amendment of the plan. Coomer failed to come forward with any evidence to suggest that the reasons given by the Hospital for failing to treat Coomer and Rowan in the same manner were false, that they did not actually motivate the Hospital to treat them differently, or that they were insufficient to motivate the Hospital to treat Rowan and Coomer differently. There is insufficient evidence on this record to enable a reasonable jury to infer that the different treatment was due to Coomer's age rather than to the size of his pension or his failure to articulate a special need for the distribution. The district court did not err in granting summary judgment in favor of the defendants on Coomer's ADEA claim.