EEOC Appeal 2025003646

U.S. EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY COMMISSION
Office of Federal Sector
P.O. Box 77960
Washington, DC 20013
Drew N.,1
Complainant,
v.
David Steiner,
Postmaster General,
United States Postal Service
(Field Areas and Regions),
Agency.
Appeal No. 2025003646
Agency No. 4G-300-15532-24
DECISION
On July 9, 2025, Complainant filed an appeal with the Equal Employment
Opportunity 	Commission 	(EEOC 	or 	Commission), 	pursuant 	to 	29 	C.F.R.
§1614.403(a), from the Agency’s June 11, 2025, final decision concerning his equal
employment 	opportunity 	(EEO) 	complaint 	of 	employment 	discrimination 	in
violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), as
amended, 29 U.S.C. § 621 et seq. 	For the following reasons, the Commission
AFFIRMS the Agency’s final decision finding no discrimination.
At the time of events giving rise to this complaint, Complainant worked as a Postal
Support Employee (PSE), City Carrier Assistant 2 (CCA2), 01 Q, at the Agency’s
Mount Bethel Post Office (MBPO) facility in Marietta, Georgia. On December 30,
2024, Complainant filed an EEO complaint alleging that the Agency discriminated
against him on the basis of age (40) when:
1 	This 	case 	has 	been 	randomly 	assigned 	a 	pseudonym 	which 	will 	replace
Complainant’s 	name 	when 	the 	decision 	is 	published 	to 	non-parties 	and 	the
Commission’s website.

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1. 	On September 11, 2024, Complainant was charged Absent Without
Leave (AWOL);
2. 	On September 18, 2024, Complainant was given an Interview II;
3. 	On various dates in July 2024 and September 2024, management
removed Complainant’s clock rings;
4. 	On 	July 	29, 	2024, 	management 	accused 	Complainant 	of 	using
marijuana edibles at work;
5. 	On a date to be specified, management denied Complainant a “hold
down”2 on an available route; and
6. 	On September 5, 2024, management told Complainant that he was slow
because he was old and he should have been terminated in his 90-day
probationary period.
At the conclusion of the investigation, the Agency provided Complainant with a
copy of the report of investigation and notice of his right to request a hearing before
an EEOC Administrative Judge. When Complainant did not request a hearing within
the time frame provided in 29 C.F.R. § 1614.108(f), the Agency issued a final
decision pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1614.110(b). The Agency found that Complainant
failed to show he was discriminated against as alleged. The instant appeal followed.
Complainant did not file a brief or statement in support.
Having thoroughly reviewed the record and the arguments entered by the parties, we
find that the preponderance of the evidence of record supports the Agency’s finding
that Complainant failed to establish that his protected class was the reason for the
Agency’s actions. Even assuming arguendo that Complainant established a prima
facie case of discrimination based on the alleged basis, we find that the Agency
articulated legitimate, nondiscriminatory reasons for its actions.
Regarding Claim 1, Supervisor Customer Services EAS-17 stated that Complainant
was not charged AWOL on September 11, 2024, or any other date. Moreover,
Supervisor 1 stated that on September 11, 2024, Complainant worked 10.45 hours.
There is no evidence in the record that Complainant was charged AWOL as alleged.
2 The Agency explained that a “hold down” is how employees can temporarily fill
vacant duty assignments when regular carriers are absent for an extended period.

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Regarding Claim 3, the Agency stated that Complainant’s Employee Everything
Report, Time and Attendance Control System (TACS Report) revealed that he had
clock rings deleted on July 27 and 29, 2024; and September 4, 6, 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, and
13, 2024. However, the TACS Report shows that they were deleted to correct errors
and did not impact Complainant being credited fully with his work hours.
As for Claim 5, the Agency stated that neither Complainant nor the record provided
any evidence that he was denied any “hold down” on any available routes. Further,
Complainant’s own statement confirmed that any alleged denials did not lead to
Complainant being sent home but simply being sent to another office to continue
working. In this respect, neither Complainant nor the record established that
Complainant was treated differently from any other CCA2.
Regarding Claims 1, 3, and 5, we find that Complainant failed to show that the
Agency’s alleged actions were motivated by age discrimination.
As for Complainant’s allegations of harassment, we find that Complainant failed to
establish that the alleged conduct was either sufficiently severe or pervasive to
constitute a hostile work environment.
We AFFIRM the Agency’s final decision finding no discrimination.
STATEMENT OF RIGHTS - ON APPEAL
RECONSIDERATION (M1125)
The Commission may, in its discretion, reconsider this appellate decision if
Complainant or the Agency submits a written request that contains arguments or
evidence that tend to establish that:
1. 	The appellate decision involved a clearly erroneous interpretation of
material fact or law; or
2. 	The appellate decision will have a substantial impact on the policies,
practices, or operations of the agency.
Requests for reconsideration must be filed with EEOC’s Office of Federal Sector
(OFS) within thirty (30) calendar days of receipt of this decision. 	If the party
requesting reconsideration elects to file a statement or brief in support of the request,
that 	statement 	or 	brief 	must 	be 	filed 	together 	with 	the 	request 	for
reconsideration.

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A party shall have twenty (20) calendar days from receipt of another party’s request
for reconsideration within which to submit a brief or statement in opposition. See
29 C.F.R. § 1614.405; Equal Employment Opportunity Management Directive for
29 C.F.R. Part 1614 (EEO MD-110), at Chap. 9 § VII.B (Aug. 5, 2015).
Complainant should submit their request for reconsideration, and any statement or
brief in support of their request, via the EEOC Public Portal, which can be found at
https://publicportal.eeoc.gov/Portal/Login.aspx. 	Alternatively, Complainant can
submit their request and arguments to the Director, Office of Federal Sector, Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission, via regular mail addressed to P.O. Box
77960, Washington, DC 20013, or by certified mail addressed to 131 M Street, NE,
Washington, DC 20507. 	In the absence of a legible postmark, a complainant’s
request to reconsider shall be deemed timely filed if OFS receives it by mail within
five days of the expiration of the applicable filing period. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.604.
An agency’s request for reconsideration must be submitted in digital format via the
EEOC’s Federal Sector EEO Portal (FedSEP). See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.403(g). Either
party’s request and/or statement or brief in opposition must also include proof of
service on the other party, unless Complainant files their request via the EEOC
Public Portal, in which case no proof of service is required.
Failure to file within the 30-day time period will result in dismissal of the party’s
request for reconsideration as untimely, unless extenuating circumstances prevented
the timely filing of the request. 	Any supporting documentation must be
submitted together with the request for reconsideration. 	The Commission will
consider requests for reconsideration filed after the deadline only in very limited
circumstances. See 29 C.F.R. § 1614.604(f).
COMPLAINANT’S RIGHT TO FILE A CIVIL ACTION (S0124)
You have the right to file a civil action in an appropriate United States District Court
within ninety (90) calendar days from the date that you receive this decision. 	If
you file a civil action, you must name as the defendant in the complaint the person
who is the official Agency head or department head, identifying that person by their
full name and official title. Failure to do so may result in the dismissal of your case
in court. 	“Agency” or “department” means the national organization, and not the
local office, facility or department in which you work. If you file a request to
reconsider and also file a civil action, filing a civil action will terminate the
administrative processing of your complaint.

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RIGHT TO REQUEST COUNSEL (Z0815)
If you want to file a civil action but cannot pay the fees, costs, or security to do so,
you may request permission from the court to proceed with the civil action without
paying these fees or costs. Similarly, if you cannot afford an attorney to represent
you in the civil action, you may request the court to appoint an attorney for you. You
must submit the requests for waiver of court costs or appointment of an
attorney directly to the court, not the Commission. The court has the sole
discretion to grant or deny these types of requests. Such requests do not alter the
time limits for filing a civil action (please read the paragraph titled Complainant’s
Right to File a Civil Action for the specific time limits).
FOR THE COMMISSION:
T. Gimbrere 	Acting Director's signature
T. Gimbrere, Acting Director
Office of Federal Sector
September 14, 2026
Date