Plaintiff fails to establish a basic element of a retaliation claim: adverse employment action

In Mackey v. Shalala (4th Cir. 3/16/04), summary judgment for the employer on a

retaliation claim was affirmed, in part because the plaintiff did not prove “that she suffered an adverse employment action when, although the job she had been transferred to may not have been as challenging and satisfying as her previous one, [she] lost no pay or benefits and was even subsequently qualified for promotion.

Retaliation claims are extremely common these days. Failure to satisfy the requirement of “an adverse employment action” is one of the most common reasons such claims fail. Commonly, retaliation is alleged based on such actions as transfer, change in job duties, unfavorable job evaluation, or “ostracism” by coworkers, none of which is usually held sufficient.

It is important that employers take steps to ensure that employees who have raised claims of discrimination or harassment are not subjected to retaliation, and significant decisions impacting their employment should be carefully reviewed.