Alaska Employment Law

The 9th Circuit has vacated Judge Beistline’s summary judgment in the employer’s favor on a Title 18 claim of retaliation.  The Court affirmed Beistline on a a disparate treatment claim.  The appellate opinion is unpublished.

Dwight Greene, a manager of the Northern Lights branch of FedEx Kinko’s, complained that FedEx provided him less support than it provided to the manager of its Dimond Mall branch.  Two weeks after Greene’s internal complaint, FedEx “audited” Greene’s performance, and six months later, after Greene refused to withdraw his complaint, FedEx fired him.  Greene relied on the Alaska Human Rights Act when he challenged his termination under both disparate treatment and retaliation theories.

On the disparate treatment claim, the Court of Appeals assumed that Greene had presented a prima facie case, but held that Greene had failed to support a claim of pretext. 

On the retaliation claim, the Court held as follows:

1) the adverse audit could be a “materially adverse” employment action;

2) the timing of the audit (2 weeks after the internal complaint) and of the termination (6 monthw after Greene refused to withdraw his complaint) suffices to defeat summary judgment; and

3) his manager’s urging that Greene “stay with the company despite his [audit] scores is evidence that those scores were merely a pretext for her retaliatory termination of Greene’s employment after he declined to withdraw his complaint.”

Greene v. FedEx Kinko’s Inc., 2007 WL ________ (9th Cir. Oct. 4,. 2007)(unpub.).

James Seedorf of Hughes Bauman represents Greene.  Tom Daniel of Perkins Coie represents FedEx.  The District Court file is 3:04-cv 00160 RRB.