Maune v. Bankers Life & Casualty Insurance Company, 4:10-cv-00074

Maune, a woman over 40 with a cleft palate/lip, worked as a Bankers Life sales agent in Pocatello, Idaho from Apr 16, 2007 to Dec 15, 2008 and was terminated.
Original case involved many defendants; current dispute remains against Bankers Life on discrimination and retaliation claims.
Maune signed an agent contract labeling her an independent contractor rather than an employee.
In 2008 Maune sought the Pocatello branch sales manager job; interviews were short and she was told she would not get the job.
Maune was terminated in Dec 2008; she filed EEOC/IHRC charges on Jun 4, 2009 and sued in Feb 2010 under Title VII, ADEA, ADA, IHRA.
The court applied Darden/Murray framework to determine employee vs. independent contractor; found Maune to be an independent contractor, leading to dismissal of federal claims.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Employee vs. independent contractor status	Maune should be treated as an employee.	Maune is an independent contractor under contract and control factors.	Maune was an independent contractor; not an employee.
Timeliness of failure-to-promote claim	Claim was continuing; timely under EEOC/IHRC statutes.	Original denial occurred in 2008; untimely under EEOC/IHRC limits.	Original failure-to-promote claim time-barred.
Relation of new claims to EEOC charge	Related to denied promotions; should be within scope.	New unit manager/supervisor claims not reasonably related to the charge.	New unit manager/supervisor claims not properly before court; not survive.
Attorney’s fees	Maune should recover fees as prevailing party.	Maune is not a prevailing party; no fees awarded.	No attorney’s fees awarded.

Nationwide Mut. Ins. Co. v. Darden, 503 U.S. 318 (U.S. 1992) (test for employee vs. independent contractor via control twelve-factor test)
Murray v. Principal Fin. Grp., Inc., 613 F.3d 943 (9th Cir. 2010) (ins. agents generally independent contractors under federal statutes)
Ribinson v. Bankers Life & Cas. Co., 899 F. Supp. 848 (D.N.H. 1995) (support for independent contractor status of Bankers Life agents)
EEOC v. Farmer Bros. Co., 31 F.3d 891 (9th Cir. 1994) (jurisdictional scope of EEOC investigations for related claims)
B.K.B. v. Maui Police Dept., 276 F.3d 1091 (9th Cir. 2002) (scope of jurisdiction for claims within EEOC charge)
National R.R. Passenger Corp. v. Morgan, 536 U.S. 101 (U.S. 2002) (discrete discriminatory acts and timely filing rules)
Barnhart v. New York Life Ins. Co., 141 F.3d 1310 (9th Cir. 1998) (all-or-nothing nature of employee vs. independent contractor status)