Based on the following memo, could you help me identify the key facts? Then could you help
Question:
Based on the following memo, could you help me identify the key facts? Then could you help me with the assignment described at the end?
TO: Associate
FROM: I.M. Shirley Wright, Partner
DATE: October 9th, 2023
RE: Dr. Ossama Mohammed / Title VII Claim
The following information summarizes an interview I had with a gentleman named Ossama Mohammed in my office yesterday. You will find your instructions at the end of this memo.
Dr. Ossama Mohammed is an Iraqi-American who has been living in the United States for nearly 40 years. He has been a citizen for 28 years. He asked me to call him "Sam," like all his friends do.
Sam got his Ph.D. in chemical engineering at the Illinois Institute of Technology ("IIT") in 1986. He then went to work as a researcher at Ingredion Incorporated (formerly known as Corn Products International, Inc.) in 1990, at its world headquarters in Westchester, Illinois. He has been working there ever since. He told me that headhunters have contacted him many times over the years but that he would not even consider leaving Ingredion. He loves - or loved - his work.
Sam does not even take most of the vacation time accruing to him, he told me. Last year he took a month when his sister got married in Dubai. He spent three weeks there, he told me, and then stopped off in London on the way home to see some old friends. He had two months accruing to him even then, though. He put everything through with H.R. and had no problems getting the time, at all. Other than that, Sam rarely takes time off. He does not travel extensively, other than for work. He is consumed by the enormity of his research projects. He was telling me all about the various enzymes and bacteria found in termites' stomachs. Needless to say, I didn't know what he was talking about, or why that might be important. He told me that termites eat and digest corn stalks. I had to keep coming back to what Ingredion had said and done to him, which I describe below.
Ingredion is a Fortune 500 company. It has over 11,000 employees worldwide and does business in over 100 countries. Its shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Ingredion recently changed its name from Corn Products but has not changed its activities or any of its key players.
During his 33-year career at Ingredion, Sam has worked on many of the company's high-value research projects. He spent over five years in GMO research before transferring to the ethanol group. For the past six years, he has been working on a team that is researching a chemical engineering process to obtain motor fuel in the form of alcohol from corn stalks. Two years ago, he and two full-time IIT professors published a book describing critical discoveries they had made through their research. Sam and these professors speak at major scientific gatherings at universities and corporate research labs about all this. Sam has always had very good annual appraisals and been given excellent ratings each year of his employment. His most recent appraisal occurred just before the action about which he is complaining. He received an "exceeds" in four categories and two "fully succeeds"; his boss said that he had been performing really well in the past six months.
Four months ago, Sam was suddenly transferred to a position as plant inspector, a position that requires only a bachelor's degree. Instead of working on projects that go to the core value of the company's stock, Sam now checks that maintenance is completed on schedule. He also checks the automated operations logs to ensure that there have not been any operational irregularities. The last plant inspector at Ingredion left her position when she got a master's degree. She then went to work as a junior researcher at Argonne Laboratories. She left because she had become over-qualified for the plant inspector position now that she had her Master's degree. Her new position at Argonne, however, is still significantly below the one Sam had held at Ingredion before his transfer.
Sam complained to his boss about this transfer. In response, his boss told him that he shouldn't complain because the company had not reduced his (substantial) salary. Ingredion had taken this action pursuant to the company's re-organization, his boss said. After Sam complained, his boss gave him a new title, although no new duties or growth opportunities. He is now "Chief Plant Inspector." But his duties have still been significantly reduced and he no longer works on important projects for Ingredion. Sam's boss is not a scientist. He was originally an engineer, but then got an MBA and went into management. He and Sam have always gotten along very well and still do. When Sam raised the issue of this transfer with him again last week, his boss told him: "Everything will be alright, Sam. You'll see."
Sam really didn't know what to think about his new job assignment, but thought it was part of a wider company organization. He was going to wait it out, as his boss seemed to suggest he should, until he had lunch with a former colleague a few days ago. Sam's former colleague, who just retired from Ingredion, told him that he had heard Sam's boss's boss (the "Big Boss") make numerous remarks filled with racial and religious slurs. It seems that the Big Boss's son had returned from military duty in Iraq not long ago, where he was seriously injured. Since his son returned, the Big Boss had spoken bitterly of Iraqis and Arabs. Specifically, in a recent business meeting about a Dubai company that might take over the management of some United States' ports, the Big Boss allegedly said: "No dirty Arab had better cross my path, or he'll be sorry."
Sam does not know the Big Boss very well. He has only met him a few times, and hasn't spoken to him in over a year. He hasn't had any reason to do so, he said. Sam told me that his own boss reports to the Big Boss weekly and updates him about his direct reports and their work assignments. When Sam asked his boss if he could speak to the Big Boss about his transfer, his boss said, "I really don't think that would be a good idea; it may make the situation worse."
Assignment
Before I call Ingredion's legal department, I would like you to draft a memo outlining Sam's position under Title VII and this circuit's case law. You should concentrate on the federal law claims available to Sam. I have other associates working on the EEOC procedures and the state law issues.
I want to know how strong our case is so I know what we can demand to make Sam whole.
Management Accounting
ISBN: 9780730369387
4th Edition
Authors: Leslie G. Eldenburg, Albie Brooks, Judy Oliver, Gillian Vesty, Rodney Dormer, Vijaya Murthy, Nick Pawsey