THE C4C FEDERAL EXCHANGE

THE COALITION FOR CHANGE, INC. (C4C)

MONTHLY NEWSLETTER
http://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/
argument_transcripts/09-400.pdf
Volume 2 / No. 5 May 2015

ISSN 2375-706X

C4C Members Attend State of

Race In America Symposium

About the Cats Paw

Theory?
The cats paw theory borrows from an old
fable in which a sly monkey convinces a cat to
reach into a fire to get roasting chestnuts. The
cat is tricked, burns its paw, and the monkey
enjoys the chestnuts without injury. In the
discrimination framework, the theory means
that an employer, like the duped cat, can be
liable -- if an ultimate decision-maker was
deceived by a biased manager who reports an
employee for misconduct and the reports from
the biased manager were not truthful.
EXAMPLE
The
Equal
Employment
Opportunity
Commission (EEOC) applied the cats paw
theory in finding that the Department of
Veterans Affairs subjected a nurse to reprisal for
prior EEO activity when it did not select her for
a position, despite the selecting officials lack of
knowledge of the nurses EEO activity. The
EEOC found the agency liable since the
selecting official did not select the complainant
because of a negative reference from her thensupervisor at the agency, whom the EEOC
found harbored a retaliatory animus against her
for her protected EEO activity. The EEOCs use
of the cats paw theory shows that awareness of
a complainants previous protected activity is
not a requisite to a finding of retaliatory action
or inaction against her. (Complainant v. Dept
of Veterans Affairs, EEOC Appeal No.
0120110544 (Sept. 23, 2013). Also see Supreme
Court decision Staub v Proctor Hospital at
http://www.supremecourt.gov/oral_arguments/arg
ument_transcripts/09-400.pdf

The C4C Federal Exchange Newsletter

Pictured left to right: Arthuretta Holmes Martin (C4C

Health and Wellness Chair; Tanya Ward Jordan (C4C
President) and Terri Williams (C4C Greetings Chair)

The Coalition For Change, Inc. (C4C) attended

the fifth annual Aspen Institute Symposium on
the State of Race in America. The Symposium,
which was held in Washington, DC at the
Newseum,
explored
new
attitudes,
opportunities, and challenges for and about
people of color in 21st century America.

Ben Jealous, former President of the NAACP pictured far

right, joins panelists in a discussion about Race In
America

Learn more and see video HERE. C4Cs

Arthuretta Holmes Martin poses question to
panelist at 1.09.12 into program.

Vol.2 / No.5 (May 2015)

ISSN 2375-706X

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The C4C will host a panel discussion on

Discriminations Effect on the Health and
Wealth of Black Americans at the upcoming
Blacks In Government training. It will be held

CASES

from 24-27 August 2015, at the Hilton Orlando

Florida.
The C4C will host a panel discussion in Atlanta
at the upcoming 100th annual conference of
the Association for the Study of African
American Life and History (ASALH). The
conference will be held September 23-27, 2015.
C4C will cover -- "How Civil Rights Violations
Occurring with the Federal Sector Lead to
Adverse Health and Wealth Consequences
Throughout the US Black Population."
H.R.1557
Federal
Employee
Antidiscrimination Act of 2015 - The following
Representatives have signed on to co-sponsor
H.R. 1557 m which was introduced on March
25, 2015, by Rep. Elijah Cummings:
Rep Eleanor Holmes Norton,
Rep. Jason Chaffetz,[UT-3],
Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee [TX-18] and
Rep. James F. Sensenbrenner, Jr. [WI-5].

OWCP Claim ProcessingStates A Claim

Appellant alleged discrimination in the
agency's failure to submit her injury
compensation claim to the Office of Workers'
Compensation
Programs
(OWCP).
The
Commission held that she stated an EEO claim,
as her complaint addressed the processing,
rather than the merits, of her OWCP claim.
Brown v. United States Postal Service, EEOC
Request No. 05980128 (July 22, 1999).
Sanctions Against Agency
The Commission upheld adverse inferences
ordered by the Administrative Judge against
the agency where it failed to include
comparative information in the report of
investigation and then failed to produce the
information in response to complainant's
discovery requests. Petersel v. Postmaster
General, EEOC Appeal No. 0720060075
(October 30, 2008).
Settlement Agreement Invalid
The Commission concluded that the settlement
agreement was invalid because it did not
comply with the requirements of the Older
Workers Benefit Protection Act of 1990, 29
U.S.C. 626(f) and it did not specifically refer to
appellant's age claim. In the present case, the
agency did not advise appellant in writing to
consult with an attorney before signing the
agreement. Appellant was only given 24 hours
to consider the agreement. Woychik-Brown v.
Department of Agriculture, EEOC Request No.
05960768 (July 16, 1999).

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EXPOSED

TODD ZINSER
Todd Zinser, the Inspector General of the U.S.
Commerce Department, is again under attack
from Congress and groups, who are seeking that
President Obama remove Zinser from office,
because of an alleged pattern of misconduct,
including retaliation against whistle-blowers and
the hiring of someone suspected of being his
girlfriend. Read more here.
The Office of Special Counsel investigated Zinser
for allegedly blackmailing four Commerce agents
into signing nondisclosure agreements that kept
them from talking to investigators and the public
about undisclosed claims of wrongdoing by the
inspector generals office.
http://nypost.com/2014/09/16/commerceszinser-ripped-in-censusgate/
On Aug. 26, 2014 four members of the House
two from each party sent a scathing letter to
Zinser about his treatment of Commerce
employees who were trying to report allegations
of wrongdoing within the agency.

In Case You MISSED It . . .

(Click RED Heading)

Five Bonneville Power officials lost their

positions over veteran-hiring scandal
Whistleblower protection may be broader than
you think
Dont Neglect Employees Medical Conditions
In Discipline Decisions
Bowman v. Small Bus. Admin., MSPB No. AT0752-13-0538-I-1 (2015)
The C4C Submitted Suggestions to the EEOC
on How to Improve Federal EEO process. See
LETTER.
Race and National Origin Discrimination
Persist 50 Years after EEOCs Founding,
Experts Say
The Scoop: Keeping the U.S. Marshals Service
Accountable
US Marshals Investigated for Quid Pro Quo
Hiring, Misuse of Asset Forfeiture Funds

The hottest place in Hell is

reserved for those who remain
neutral in times of great moral
conflict.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

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Missed a C4C EXCHANGE Newsletter? If so click HERE

The C4C Federal Exchange monthly newsletter obtained its ISSN from the Library of
Congress in October 2014. The e-zine covers everything from employment cases, book
reviews, analyses of current breaking crises to pithy editorials on stress and wellness
management.

C4Cs New Telephone Number

202-810-5985

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The Coalition For Change, Inc. (C4C)

P.O. Box 142,
Washington, DC 20044

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