Dismissal of injured border agent’s discrimination charge upheld
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The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Thursday upheld the dismissal of a border agent’s lawsuit saying he was discriminated against upon returning to work after a back injury when he was briefly assigned a lower-paying position under the Department of Homeland Security.
Charles Center, who began working as an inspector with the Immigration and Naturalization Service in 1999 and later as an officer with the Customs and Border Protection Agency, suffered a back injury in “2004 or 2005,” according to documents in Charles Edward Center Jr. v. Secretary, Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection Agency. He returned to work in 2006 but took leave again for the same injury and returned in 2009, according to documents filed in the Atlanta-based federal appeals court.
Upon his return, the agency “erroneously offered him a position that paid less than his former position. Although the agency quickly corrected its mistake, (Mr.) Center sued the agency for retaliation and disability discrimination,” documents state.
A U.S. District Court dismissed the complaint for lack of jurisdiction because of the Federal Employees' Compensation Act, which provides comprehensive remedies for injured federal workers. The court granted summary judgment against Mr. Center's claims of retaliation and disability discrimination “because (Mr.) Center failed to present evidence that the nondiscriminatory reasons offered by the agency were a pretext for discrimination,” documents state.
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