Jackson v. Planco, 2011 U.S. App. LEXIS 12291 (3d. Cir. June 14, 2011)

The Third Circuit holds that plaintiff failed to establish pretext when his employment was terminated because of the employer's safety concerns following an angry outburst by the employee and his subsequent viewing of blocked gun websites at work.

The Third Circuit upheld summary judgment in favor of an employer who terminated the plaintiff's employment after he expressed anger concerning the employer's offer of a lower paying position and after it learned that he was accessing blocked websites at work, including a website featuring guns. Specifically, the plaintiff suffered a heart attack and two strokes during his employment with the defendant, which caused him to take medical leave. Upon his return to work, the plaintiff complained to the human resources department that he felt he was being singled out for review because of his disability. The human resources department investigated the allegations but found no basis for the discrimination allegations and found documentation that the employee's performance was substandard. After the results of the investigation were reported to the employee, he was offered a lower paying position with fewer responsibilities. The employee declined the position "in a manner that made the human resources representative believe [that the employee] was angry and disgusted." The next day, the defendant learned that its internet filter was not working and that the employee visited several websites that would normally be blocked, including the Playboy website and several gun websites. The plaintiff's supervisor, who knew that the plaintiff owned guns, noticed the plaintiff viewing the gun websites and reported to the human resources department that she was afraid for herself and the plaintiff's other supervisor. Based upon the safety concerns raised by the employees and the plaintiff's lack of compliance with the company's internet policy, the plaintiff's employment was terminated. The plaintiff subsequently filed a lawsuit, alleging violations of the ADA, the FMLA and retaliation. In rejecting the plaintiff's claims, the Third Circuit determined that the plaintiff failed to demonstrate that the employer's decision to terminate his employment was a pretext for discrimination. In particular, the court noted that the plaintiff's arguments focused on whether the employer's decision to terminate his employment was a good or wise decision, not whether discrimination or retaliation was the motivation for the employer's decision. In fact, the court noted that "[t]here is nothing suspect about [a supervisor] at one time being comfortable with the idea of [plaintiff] as a gun owner and a gun web site viewed but later being frightened of it in the context of [plaintiff's] performance management." Moreover, the court found that the plaintiff's arguments that other employees were not punished for viewing blocked websites were unavailing, reasoning that the plaintiff did not introduce any evidence that other angry or disgruntled employees viewed blocked websites about weapons that could be used to cause physical harm, and which were key elements in the employer's decision to terminate his employment.

Case Law Alert - 4t Qtr 2011