Plaintiff Raised Genuine Issue Of Pretext But Not Constructive Discharge
Barbara Fischer was an employee at Avanade, Inc. from May 2001 until her resignation in October 2005. During the course of her employment, Fischer was passed over on multiple occasions for a promotion to Delivery Management Practice Director at the company.
In 2005, Fischer brought a lawsuit against Avanade under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 alleging gender discrimination based upon a failure to promote and retaliation in the form of constructive discharge. The district court granted summary judgment for Avanade on both claims. On appeal the 7th Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part, holding that: (1) Fischer did not show that her working conditions had become unbearable in support of her constructive discharge claim; but (2) Fischer had raised a genuine issue of material fact concerning whether Avanade’s proffered non-discriminatory reason for naming a male employee to the Director position was pretextual.
Fischer v. Avanade, Inc.
The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals’ jurisdiction includes Illinois, Indiana and Wisconsin.