Britany C.,1 Complainant,v.Megan J. Brennan, Postmaster General, United States Postal Service (Great Lakes Area), Agency.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Dec 7, 2018

0520170530 (E.E.O.C. Dec. 7, 2018)

U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
Office of Federal Operations
P.O. Box 77960
Washington, DC 20013

Britany C.,1
Complainant,

v.

Megan J. Brennan,
Postmaster General,
United States Postal Service
(Great Lakes Area),
Agency.

Request No. 0520170530

Appeal No. 0120171830

Agency No. 1J-494-0005-17

DECISION ON REQUEST FOR RECONSIDERATION

Complainant timely requested that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC or
Commission) reconsider its decision in EEOC Appeal No. 0120171830 (July 25, 2017). EEOC
Regulations provide that the Commission may, in its discretion, grant a request to reconsider any
previous Commission decision issued pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.405(a), where the requesting
party demonstrates 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. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.405(c).

Complainant, a Mail Handler at the Agency’s Processing and Distribution Center in Lansing,
Michigan, contacted an EEO Counselor to allege that that the Agency subjected her to a hostile
work environment because of her race, color, sex, age, disability, and prior protected EEO activity.
Complainant signed for receipt of the Notice of Right to File an Individual Complaint on February
9, 2017. The Notice clearly informed Complainant that “your complaint will be deemed timely
filed if it is received at this address before the expiration of the 15-day filing period, or if it bears
a postmark that is dated before the expiration of the filing period.”

1 This case has been randomly assigned a pseudonym which will replace Complainant’s name
when the decision is published to non-parties and the Commission’s website.
0520170530

2
Complainant filed her complaint, but the complaint was postmarked February 25, 2017, one day
after the expiration of the 15-day timeframe within which to file a formal complaint.
Consequently, the Agency dismissed the Complaint for untimely filing.

On appeal, Complainant submitted a register receipt bearing the date and time of “02/24/17 6:56
P.M.” as well as a Postal Service “Product Tracking & Reporting” that described “Accept or
Pickup” as occurring on February 24, 2017 from Lansing, Michigan. The Commission considered
the submitted documentation, but affirmed the Agency’s dismissal finding that Complainant’s
complaint was untimely filed as it was postmarked after the regulatory 15-day timeframe.

Our regulations make it clear that formal EEO complaints must be filed within fifteen days of
receipt of the appropriate notice. 29 C.F.R. § 1614.106(b). In the absence of the extenuating
circumstances set forth in the regulations, the Agency is required to dismiss complaints that fail to
comply with the time limit set forth in subsection 106(b). See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.107(a)(2). A
document shall be deemed timely if it is postmarked before the expiration of the applicable filing
period. 29 C.F.R. § 1614.604(b). While we recognize that Complainant attempted to file her
complaint within the regulatory timeframe, the Agency’s decision to dismiss the complaint was
entirely consistent with our regulations. Further we note that Complainant has not presented
extenuating circumstances that would justify extending the time limit. We therefore find that our
previous decision was not the result of a clearly erroneous interpretation of material fact or law.

After reviewing the previous decision and the entire record, the Commission finds that the request
fails to meet the criteria of 29 C.F.R. § 1614.405(c), and it is the decision of the Commission to
DENY the request. The decision in EEOC Appeal No. 0120171830 remains the Commission's
decision. There is no further right of administrative appeal on the decision of the Commission on
this request.

COMPLAINANT’S RIGHT TO FILE A CIVIL ACTION (P0610)

This decision of the Commission is final, and there is no further right of administrative appeal
from the Commission’s decision. You have the right to file a civil action in an appropriate United
States District Court within ninety (90) calendar days from the date that you receive this decision.
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.

RIGHT TO REQUEST COUNSEL (Z0815)

If you want to file a civil action but cannot pay the fees, costs, or security to do so, you may request
permission from the court to proceed with the civil action without paying these fees or costs.
Similarly, if you cannot afford an attorney to represent you in the civil action, you may request the
court to appoint an attorney for you.
0520170530

3
You must submit the requests for waiver of court costs or appointment of an attorney
directly to the court, not the Commission. The court has the sole discretion to grant or deny
these types of requests. Such requests do not alter the time limits for filing a civil action (please
read the paragraph titled Complainant’s Right to File a Civil Action for the specific time limits).

FOR THE COMMISSION:

______________________________ Carlton M. Hadden’s signature
Carlton M. Hadden, Director
Office of Federal Operations

December 7, 2018
Date