01a10001
03-07-2001
Jill St. George, Complainant, v. William J. Henderson, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service, Agency.
Jill St. George v. United States Postal Service
01A10001
March 7, 2001
.
Jill St. George,
Complainant,
v.
William J. Henderson,
Postmaster General,
United States Postal Service,
Agency.
Appeal No. 01A10001
Agency No. 4-C-442-0167-00
DECISION
The record indicates that on June 21, 2000, the parties entered into a
settlement agreement which provided, in pertinent part, that:
Complainant will be �made whole� as a letter carrier provided that
a physician indicates she has fully recovered from her injuries and
that she is capable of performing all tasks related to her position.
The employment will begin upon receipt of the doctor's statement and her
probationary period will be reinstated. Also, pre-hiring requirements
will be in effect.
On August 15, 2000, complainant alleged that the agency breached the
settlement agreement since she was not �made whole.� Specifically,
complainant indicated that although she was reinstated to her job
under the settlement agreement, she was not paid for lost wages, sick
time, retirement time, vacation time, and all insurances which lapsed.
On August 24, 2000, the agency issued its final decision stating that
it fully complied with the terms of the settlement agreement.
EEOC Regulation 29 C.F.R. � 1614.504 provides that if the complainant
believes that the agency failed to comply with the terms of a settlement
agreement, the complainant should notify the Director of Equal Employment
Opportunity, in writing, of the alleged noncompliance with the settlement
agreement, within thirty (30) days of when the complainant knew or should
have known of the alleged noncompliance. The complainant may request that
the terms of the settlement agreement be specifically implemented or,
alternatively, that the complaint be reinstated for further processing
from the point processing ceased.
The agency shall resolve the matter and respond to the complainant,
in writing. If the agency has not responded to the complainant, in
writing, or if the complainant is not satisfied with the agency's attempt
to resolve the matter, the complainant may appeal to the Commission for
a determination as to whether the agency has complied with the terms of
the settlement agreement or final decision.
The Commission has held that settlement agreements are contracts between
the complainant and the agency and it is the intent of the parties
as expressed in the contract, and not some unexpressed intention, that
controls the contract's construction. Eggleston v. Department of Veterans
Affairs, EEOC Request No. 05900795 (August 23, 1990). In addition, the
Commission generally follows the rule that if a writing appears to be
plain and unambiguous on its face, its meaning must be determined from
the four corners of the instrument without resort to extrinsic evidence
of any nature. See Montgomery Elevator v. Building Engineering Services,
730 F.2d 377 (5th Cir. 1984). The Commission has followed this rule
when interpreting settlement agreements. The Commission's policy in
this regard is based on the premise that the face of the agreement best
reflects the understanding of the parties. A binding settlement agreement
requires a contemporaneous meeting of the minds. Brown v. Department
of Defense, EEOC Request No. 05940628 (November 3, 1994).
After a review of the record, the Commission finds that there was no
meeting of the minds when the instant settlement agreement was entered
into by the parties. The record indicates that when the agency entered
into the settlement agreement, it believed that complainant would be
�made whole� by reinstating her back to her letter carrier position,
including her probationary period. The record also indicates that when
complainant entered into the settlement agreement, she believed that she
would be �made whole� by, in addition to the reinstatement of her job,
receiving her lost wages, sick time, retirement time, vacation time, and
all insurances which lapsed. The Commission finds that when the parties
entered into the settlement agreement, they understood the phrase �made
whole� to have significantly different meanings. Since there was no
meeting of the minds of the parties when the settlement agreement was
entered into, the Commission finds that the June 21, 2000 settlement
agreement is not a binding settlement agreement and is void.
Accordingly, the agency's decision finding no settlement breach is VACATED
and the purportedly settled matter is REMANDED back to the agency for
further processing in accordance with this decision and applicable
regulations.
ORDER
The agency, within thirty (30) calendar days of the date this decision
becomes final, shall reinstate the settled matter, complainant's informal
complaint, Agency No. 4-C-442-0167-00, from the point processing ceased,
and thereafter process the matter in accordance with the regulations.
The agency, within thirty (30) calendar days of the date this decision
becomes final, shall notify complainant in writing that it has reinstated
her informal complaint for further processing.
A copy of the agency's letter notifying complainant of the reinstatement
of her informal complaint must be sent to the Compliance Officer as
referenced below.
IMPLEMENTATION OF THE COMMISSION'S DECISION (K0900)
Compliance with the Commission's corrective action is mandatory.
The agency shall submit its compliance report within thirty (30)
calendar days of the completion of all ordered corrective action. The
report shall be submitted to the Compliance Officer, Office of Federal
Operations, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, P.O. Box 19848,
Washington, D.C. 20036. The agency's report must contain supporting
documentation, and the agency must send a copy of all submissions to
the complainant. If the agency does not comply with the Commission's
order, the complainant may petition the Commission for enforcement of
the order. 29 C.F.R. � 1614.503(a). The complainant also has the right
to file a civil action to enforce compliance with the Commission's order
prior to or following an administrative petition for enforcement. See 29
C.F.R. �� 1614.407, 1614.408, and 29 C.F.R. � 1614.503(g). Alternatively,
the complainant has the right to file a civil action on the underlying
complaint in accordance with the paragraph below entitled "Right to File
A Civil Action." 29 C.F.R. �� 1614.407 and 1614.408. A civil action
for enforcement or a civil action on the underlying complaint is subject
to the deadline stated in 42 U.S.C. � 2000e-16(c)(Supp. V 1993). If the
complainant files a civil action, the administrative processing of the
complaint, including any petition for enforcement, will be terminated.
See 29 C.F.R. � 1614.409.
STATEMENT OF RIGHTS - ON APPEAL
RECONSIDERATION (M0900)
The Commission may, in its discretion, reconsider the decision in this
case if the complainant or the agency submits a written request containing
arguments or evidence which tend to establish that:
1. The appellate decision involved a clearly erroneous interpretation
of material fact or law; or
2. The appellate decision will have a substantial impact on the policies,
practices, or operations of the agency.
Requests to reconsider, with supporting statement or brief, must be filed
with the office of federal operations (OFO) within thirty (30) calendar
days of receipt of this decision or within twenty (20) calendar days of
receipt of another party's timely request for reconsideration. See 29
C.F.R. � 1614.405; Equal Employment Opportunity Management Directive for
29 C.F.R. Part 1614 (EEO MD-110), 9-18 (November 9, 1999). All requests
and arguments must be submitted to the Director, Office of Federal
Operations, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, P.O. Box 19848,
Washington, D.C. 20036. In the absence of a legible postmark, the
request to reconsider shall be deemed timely filed if it is received by
mail within five days of the expiration of the applicable filing period.
See 29 C.F.R. � 1614.604. The request or opposition must also include
proof of service on the other party.
Failure to file within the time period will result in dismissal of your
request for reconsideration as untimely, unless extenuating circumstances
prevented the timely filing of the request. Any supporting documentation
must be submitted with your request for reconsideration. The Commission
will consider requests for reconsideration filed after the deadline only
in very limited circumstances. See 29 C.F.R. � 1614.604(c).
COMPLAINANT'S RIGHT TO FILE A CIVIL ACTION
(R0900)
This is a decision requiring the agency to continue its administrative
processing of your complaint. However, if you wish to file a civil
action, you have the right to file such action in an appropriate United
States District Court within ninety (90) calendar days from the date
that you receive this decision. In the alternative, you may file a
civil action after one hundred and eighty (180) calendar days of the date
you filed your complaint with the agency, or filed your appeal with the
Commission. If you file a civil action, you must name as the defendant in
the complaint the person who is the official agency head or department
head, identifying that person by his or her full name and official title.
Failure to do so may result in the dismissal of your case in court.
"Agency" or "department" means the national organization, and not the
local office, facility or department in which you work. Filing a civil
action will terminate the administrative processing of your complaint.
RIGHT TO REQUEST COUNSEL (Z1199)
If you decide to file a civil action, and if you do not have or cannot
afford the services of an attorney, you may request that the Court appoint
an attorney to represent you and that the Court permit you to file the
action without payment of fees, costs, or other security. See Title VII
of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, 42 U.S.C. � 2000e et seq.;
the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended, 29 U.S.C. �� 791, 794(c).
The grant or denial of the request is within the sole discretion of
the Court. Filing a request for an attorney does not extend your time
in which to file a civil action. Both the request and the civil action
must be filed within the time limits as stated in the paragraph above
("Right to File A Civil Action").
FOR THE COMMISSION:
______________________________
Carlton M. Hadden, Director
Office of Federal Operations
March 7, 2001
__________________
Date