In Re Rodriguez
United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
487 F.3d 1001 (2007)
- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
Jose Rodriguez (plaintiff) was a Hispanic American who worked for FedEx (defendant) as a truck driver. Rodney Adkinson was Rodriguez’s supervisor. Rodriguez was interested in being promoted and enrolled in FedEx’s Leadership Apprentice Course. Rodriguez interviewed twice for promotions but was not selected. Adkinson stated to other managers that Rodriguez was not selected due to his accent and speech patterns. Adkinson also made disparaging remarks about Rodriguez’s accent to these managers. These managers told Rodriguez about Adkinson’s statements. Rodriguez sued FedEx in state court, alleging a violation of Michigan’s state civil-rights act. FedEx removed the case to federal court, which analyzed claims under Michigan’s statute in the same way as claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII). The other managers filed affidavits describing Adkinson’s comments. The district court granted FedEx’s motion for summary judgment. Rodriguez appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Moore, J.)
Concurrence (Batchelder, J.)
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