Donald Bush v. Compass Group USA
683 F. App'x 440
| 6th Cir. | 2017Background
- Donald Bush worked as a chef manager for Eurest/Compass at a client site (Kentucky Farm Bureau, KFB) from 2010–2012; his duties included supervising cooks and recurring heavy lifting (up to ~50 lbs) for catering and stock-handling.
- In May 2012 Bush informed client managers he had degenerative spinal condition and sought a transfer to a less physical position, and thereafter applied for ten internal positions but was not placed.
- By late 2012 Bush’s condition worsened; physicians restricted him to lifting no more than 10 lbs; he hired temporary help to cover heavy tasks, increasing costs to the account.
- On October 25, 2012 Bush abruptly left work during a candidate cooking test, later received psychiatric care, and checked into the hospital; KFB demanded his replacement and Compass planned a 6–8 week transition leading to termination if he did not secure another role.
- Bush took FMLA leave (Oct 26, 2012–Jan 18, 2013); he was released to return Dec 7, 2012 but had been replaced and was laid off Jan 10, 2013 (retroactive to Dec 10, 2012). He sued for ADA/KCRA disability discrimination, FMLA retaliation, and KWCA (workers’ compensation) retaliation.
- The district court granted Compass summary judgment on all claims; the Sixth Circuit affirmed.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADA/KCRA — qualified individual (essential functions) | Bush: he is disabled but could perform the job with accommodations (e.g., extra labor) or by reassignment. | Compass: heavy lifting (up to 50 lbs) was an essential function and Bush admitted he could not perform it; his post-deposition affidavit contradicts his deposition. | Affirmed — Bush failed prima facie because he could not perform essential functions with or without reasonable accommodations; contradictory affidavit disregarded. |
| ADA — reasonableness of accommodation | Bush: employer could hire staff to do heavy lifting or reassign him to internal vacancies. | Compass: removing/ reassigning essential functions is per se unreasonable; requiring promotion or waiving transfer rules is not required. | Affirmed — requested accommodations were unreasonable as a matter of law. |
| FMLA retaliation | Bush: temporal proximity (termination ~1 month after leave ended) supports causation. | Compass: decision to terminate predated notice of FMLA leave; client pressure and job abandonment motivated termination. | Affirmed — no causal link: employer learned of leave after plan to terminate was already in motion; temporal gap and other evidence defeat inference. |
| KWCA (workers’ comp retaliation) | Bush: reporting workplace injury led to eventual termination (temporal proximity). | Compass: long delay (4–8 months), evidence shows nondiscriminatory reasons (inability to perform essential duties, job abandonment, client demand). | Affirmed — temporal gap plus unrebutted legit reasons negate inference that protected activity was a substantial/motivating factor. |
Key Cases Cited
- Kelly Servs., Inc. v. Creative Harbor, LLC, 846 F.3d 857 (6th Cir.) (standard of review for summary judgment)
- Demyanovich v. Cadon Plating & Coatings, L.L.C., 747 F.3d 419 (6th Cir.) (elements of ADA prima facie case)
- Keith v. County of Oakland, 703 F.3d 918 (6th Cir.) (factors for determining essential job functions)
- Rorrer v. City of Stow, 743 F.3d 1025 (6th Cir.) (written job description is evidence but not dispositive)
- Aerel, S.R.L. v. PCC Airfoils, L.L.C., 448 F.3d 899 (6th Cir.) (when post-deposition affidavit contradicts deposition)
- Hedrick v. W. Reserve Care Sys., 355 F.3d 444 (6th Cir.) (employee’s burden to propose reasonable accommodation)
- E.E.O.C. v. Ford Motor Co., 782 F.3d 753 (6th Cir.) (removing an essential function is per se unreasonable)
- DiCarlo v. Potter, 358 F.3d 408 (6th Cir.) (temporal proximity may support inference of retaliation)