The Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment in a case in which the plaintiff alleged that the employer terminated her employment on account of age discrimination, reverse race discrimination, sex discrimination, and retaliation. Andrews v. CBOCS West, No. 12-3399 (7th Cir.), February 14, 2014. The plaintiff filed a lawsuit against her employer in which she brought claims under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended, the Age Discrimination In Employment Act, and Section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act of 1866. The plaintiff was subjected to daily, derogatory age-based remarks made by her supervisor. However, the Seventh Circuit found that the plaintiff had voluntarily resigned from employment and, therefore, suffered no materially adverse employment action.
Some type of tangible, materially adverse job action must be established by a plaintiff in order to prevail in an employment discrimination or retaliation case. It appears that a harassment, hostile work environment type of employment claim may not have been brought in this case.