Digest of ICRC Final Decisions,
July 1, 1988 to June 30,1989
Beth Whennen v. Memorial
Lawn Cemetary, Inc. Complainant,
an employee, alleged that Respondent discriminated against her on the basis
of sex by (a) failing to provide her health benefits while male employees
were provided such benefits; (b) paying her less in the position of grounds
supervisor than a former male grounds supervisor was paid; (c) reducing
her work hours and laying her off due to pregnancy; and (d) constructively
discharging her. During the course of the hearing, the issue arose of whether
the Complainant had been retaliated against for filing her complaint by
being watched and questioned when she went to the Respondent in order to
visit relatives' graves.
No discrimination was found
in regard to the health benefits allegation as there was no different treatment
on the basis of sex because health benefits were provided only to one long-term
male employee, and not to any other employee, male or female, including
the Complainant. Discrimination was found in regard to the pay allegation
as the Complainant was paid less than male supervisor although no credible
nondiscriminatory reason for the pay differential was offerred by the Respondent.
The reduction in work hours
and subsequent layoff was found to be discriminatory because they resulted
from a practice of requiring pregnant women to accept reduced work hours
and layoff, which was not justified by business necessity. The Complainant
was not, however, constructively discharged as the Complainant failed to
show that the discriminatory acts of the Respondent made her working conditions
so bad that a reasonable person would have found them to be intolerable.
The retaliation issue was found to not be within the Commission's jurisdiction
as no complaint had been filed in regard to the alleged retaliatory acts,
which occurred after the original complaint was filed. (Decided at July
15,1988 Commission meeting.) [No appeal was taken. Commission filed
an enforcement action which is currently pending in Wapello County District
Court.]
Otis Payton v. Fishercrest
Apartments. Complainants,
a husband and wife, both of whom are black, and who were seeking an apartment,
alleged that the Respondent housing provider indirectly indicated that they
would not rent an apartment to the Complainants because of their race. Specifically,
the Respondent was alleged to have deliberately misinformed the Complainants
that a rental unit was not available when it was. Discrimination was shown
by evidence demonstrating different treatment on the basis of race, i.e.,
their white daughter-in-law was able to rent the apartment on their behalf
when she did not inform the Respondent of her in-laws' race. The Respondent's
proffered justification for not renting to the Complainants, that the apartment
was being held for an unidentified Oriental couple, was found not to be
credible. (Decided at August 26,1988 Commission meeting.) [Respondent
filed an appeal in Scott County District Court. The case is scheduled for
final submission to the court on February 2, 1990.1
Sammy Jolly v. Venetian Iron
Works, Inc. Complainant,
an applicant for hire, alleged that Respondent failed to hire him for the
position of welder because of his race, which is black. Respondent failed
to appear and default judgment was rendered. (Decided at August 26,1988
Commission meeting.) [Commission has administratively closed this case.
Respondent had not only gone out of business but had transferred all its
assets to the bank in partial satisfaction of its debt. Hence it was determined
that enforcement would be futile.]
Christy Johnson v. Keokuk
Steel Casting. Complainant,
an employee, alleged that the Respondent retaliated against her by discharging
her because of having previously filed a complaint alleging sex discrimination.
Retaliation was found when the reasons given by the Respondent, all of which
related to the Complainant's work performance, were found to be pretexts
for discrimination. (Decided at September 23, 1988 Commission meeting
after remand from the Iowa District Court for Lee County.) [Respondent
appealed to Lee County District Court. Commission is currently awaiting
a decision from the court.]
Sharon M. Trout v. Agnes Crumbaugh. Complainant, who is white, alleged
that Respondents refused to rent her an apartment because she had a black
male friend. A prima facie case of discrimination was established by showing
(a) that the Complainant expressed an interest in renting and was shown
an apartment; (b) Respondent's agent learned that the Complainant's male
friend was black; (c) that when Complainant informed Respondent's agent
that she wished to rent a particular apartment, he asked whether her male
friend was black; and (d) when she responded that he was, the Respondent's
agent refused to rent to her. The Respondent's proffered reason for refusing
to rent to her, that she did not have sufficient funds to pay the rent and
deposit, was found to be a pretext for discrimination. (Decided at December
9,1988 Commission meeting.) [Just prior to the commission meeting, Respondent
Agnes Crumbaugh died. Her estate paid for judgment to Complainant.]
Victoria L. Hamer v. United
Parcel Service, Inc. Complainant,
an employee, alleged that she was discharged by the Respondent because of
her sex. Discrimination was found because the evidence showed (a) that similarly
situated male employees were treated differently in regard to the discharge
practices of the Respondent; and (b) that management admitted bias against
female employees and followed other sexually discriminatory practices, in
particular allowing an environment of sexual harassment of female employees.
This suggested that the termination of the Complainant was consistent with
the Respondent's usual practice of sex discrimination. (Decided at February
24,1989 Commission meeting.) [Both parties filed appeals in Wapello
County District Cout. The appeals were finally submitted to the court on
October 23, 1989. The commission is currently awaiting a decision from the
court.]
Denise Walker v. The Best
Western Airport Inn. Complainant,
an employee, alleged that Respondent employer sexually harassed and constructively
discharged her. The Commission awarded the Complainant $13,623.50 plus interest
in back pay and $25,000 in damages for emotional distress. (Decided at
February 24,1989 Commission meeting.) [The Best Western Airport Inn
has filed for bankruptcy. Complainant is attempting to collect some portion
of her judgment in bankruptcy court.]
Stanley Deck v. Henkel Corporation.
Complainant, an employee
who was diagnosed as having acute agitation and depression, alleged that
Respondent discharged him due to a perceived mental disability. The Complainant
had been on sick leave due to his illness and subsequently returned to work.
The Respondent failed to meet its legal duty to reasonably accommodate the
Complainant's disability when it terminated him after he had to leave work
due to his disability. Five years of back pay and $5,000 in damages for
emotional distress were awarded. (Decided at February 24,1989 Commission
meeting.) [Respondent appealed to Lee County District Court. Final submission
to the court is scheduled for December 26, 1989.]
Ronald Lewis v. J. D. Marshall-JDM
Business Consultants. This
complaint, which alleged race discrimination in employment, was dismissed
when the Complainant failed to provide federal income tax records as ordered
by the Commission. (Decided at March 24,1989 Commission meeting.) [As
no appeal was taken, the dismissal is the final disposition of this case.]
Doris A. Carruthers v. Prudential Insurance Company. Complainant, a female, alleged that the Respondent insurance company's practice of not selling life insurance to recipients of Aid to Dependent Children or other public Assistance had a disparate impact on females and therefore constituted illegal sex discrimination in the area of public accommodations. The insurance company was found to be a public accommodation under the Iowa Civil Rights Act and was found to have violated the act based on statistical evidence demonstrating that the policy does have a disproportionate effect on women. (Decided at the May 12,1989 Commission meeting.) [Respondent filed an appeal in Polk County. Final submission is scheduled for December 15, 1989.]