Title VII Violation – Retaliation Claim

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7^th Circuit Court of Appeals

Case Name: Juan Cervantes v. Ardagh Group

Case No.: 17-3536

Officials: WOOD, Chief Judge, and RIPPLE, and BARRETT, Circuit Judges.

Focus: Title VII Violation – Retaliation Claim

Juan Cervantes brought this action against his employer, Ardagh Group (“Ardagh”), alleging violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e et seq., and the Illinois Human Rights Act, 775 ILCS 5/1‐101 et seq. (“IHRA”). The complaint asserted that Ardagh had refused to promote him, had issued him performance warnings, and had demoted him because of his race and national origin and in retaliation for previous complaints about discrimination and harassment. The district court granted summary judgment in favor of Ardagh.

The district court’s decision is correct. Mr. Cervantes did not exhaust his administrative remedies for his discrimination claims. His retaliation claim also must fail because there is no evidence of a causal connection between any protected activity by Mr. Cervantes and an adverse employment action by Ardagh. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the district court.

Affirmed

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Derek A Hawkins is trademark corporate counsel for Harley-Davidson. Hawkins oversees the prosecution and maintenance of the Harley-Davidson’s international trademark portfolio in emerging markets.