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Donald L. Hickman claimed the Justice Department discriminated against him on the basis of age and disability when he was rejected for a management position at the agency.

In 1998, Hickman applied for a job as a supervisor in the Drug Enforcement Administration's Dallas office. The DEA is part of the Justice Department. Hickman was considered one of the most qualified applicants, but ultimately lost the job to another candidate. He claimed the Justice Department passed him over for the job because he was 51 years old and was allergic to marijuana.

Justice had placed Hickman, who began his career with the DEA as a special agent and criminal investigator in 1974, on retirement disability in 1980 because he was allergic to marijuana. But Hickman returned to work in 1991, after the Office of Personnel Management decided Justice had erroneously placed him on medical retirement.

When Hickman filed his discrimination complaint in 1999, the agency concluded that his allergy did not constitute a disability under the 1973 Rehabilitation Act because it did not "substantially affect a major life activity." The agency also defended its choice for the management position, noting that the successful candidate had experience as a supervisor and had worked at the Dallas office.

On appeal, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission upheld the agency's decision, saying that Hickman's drug allergy was not a disability and did not factor into the DEA's decision not to hire him. Also, Hickman's application for the Dallas position did not refer to his disability retirement, so agency officials involved in the selection process were unaware of the allergy, according to the EEOC.

The EEOC also dismissed the age discrimination complaint, since the candidate selected for the job was only four years younger than Hickman, and the agency successfully proved it picked the most qualified applicant.

Donald L. Hickman v. Department of Justice, (EEOC Appeal No. 01A11797), Dec. 27, 2001.

Hostile Environment

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission gave its stamp of approval to classify a four-year old discrimination lawsuit lodged against the Agriculture Department by Hispanic employees as a class action case in January.

At issue is whether the Agriculture Department's Forest Service discriminated against approximately 1,600 Hispanic employees in "selection, promotion, appraisal, awards and training programs" and whether the department failed to "remedy a working environment that is hostile to Hispanic employees."

The case originated when Hispanic employees of the Forest Service met with department officials and asked them to address instances of departmentwide discrimination and retaliation against Hispanics. Nine years later, the issues remained unsolved, and Hispanic employees alleged that retaliation instances increased.

Mediation was attempted, but the Hispanic employees said the discrimination had not stopped, so two Hispanic employees filed an informal EEO class complaint in May 1998. Five months later, other Hispanic employees of the Forest Service filed a formal EEO class complaint.

In November 2000, attorneys for the employees contacted Agriculture and tried to negotiate a settlement. After getting no response, the attorneys petitioned for class certification. An administrative judge approved the case on Jan. 7. The case now awaits a final action decision by the Agriculture Department.

Joe Sedillo, et al v. Agriculture Department, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Doc. #100-99-7226P, Jan. 7, 2002.