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A New Jersey District Court recently ruled in favor of an
employer who reassigned a long-term African-American employee who
did not have the ability to perform a particular managerial job
despite the claim that her reassignment was a demotion due to her
race.
Schlumberger Technology Corporation is an oilfield services
provider. In 1981, the Company hired Brenda Bray, an
African-American female, as an hourly employee. Bray received
multiple promotions during her tenure with Schlumberger. In March
2007, Bray received another promotion to the Quality Health Safety
and Environmental ("QHSE") and facilities manager
position for Schlumberger's Princeton, New Jersey technology
center, but she struggled in this role. In 2008, Bray's manager
provided her with a list of issues items that he thought she needed
to address in order to make the facility compliant with Company
mandates. However, in May 2008, the Princeton technology center was
found non-compliant.
In January 2009, Schlumberger's manager responsible for the
health, safety, security and environmental functions of the
Princeton technology center visited the facility and determined
that there were twenty items that needed immediate remedial action.
He found that "hazardous chemical containers were being stored
in unsecure areas, technology assets throughout the facility were
not secured, the signage for personal protective equipment was
deficient, and [Bray] failed to conduct a security assessment of
the site despite ongoing construction at [the Princeton technology
center] that resulted in barriers being removed." Based on
this review and her overall poor performance while working at the
Princeton facility, Bray's management removed her from the
position and reassigned her to customer quality manager.
In August 2010, Bray filed a 26-count Complaint with the United
States District Court for the District of New Jersey. Bray's
claims included an allegation that Schlumberger intentionally
discriminated against her because of her race in violation of Title
VII and the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination when it
reassigned her from a QHSE and facilities manager to customer
quality manager.
Bray claimed that the customer quality manager position was
tantamount to a demotion. She alleged that employees perceived
customer quality manager as a subordinate supervisory position and,
therefore, she suffered an adverse employment action. The only
argument provided by Bray was "her own, unsubstantiated
opinion that the position of customer quality manager is
subjectively less desirable and significant than QHSE and
facilities manager." The court found that there was no adverse
employment action. Her rate of pay, employment grade, and benefits
remained unchanged.
The district court also found that Schlumberger articulated a
"legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason" for its decision.
Plaintiff had numerous non-compliance issues and did not have the
leadership abilities for the position. Bray was unable to establish
that the Company's reasons were pretext for discrimination. The
court dismissed her race claims.
This case is an important reminder that all employment actions
should be based on legitimate, nondiscriminatory reasons.
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