Jared Dillon, a former employee of Mountain Coal Company, L.L.C., won a jury verdict against Mountain Coal and its parent companies (collectively, “Mountain Coal”) on his claims of discrimination under the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”), 42 U.S.C. § 12101 et seq. Thereafter, the district court granted Mountain Coal’s motion for judgment as a matter of law, concluding that Mr. Dillon had not put forth sufficient evidence to show that Mountain Coal regarded him as disabled. Mr. Dillon appeals. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1291, and we AFFIRM.
I. BACKGROUND
In March 1999, Mountain Coal hired Mr. Dillon as an underground maintenance mechanic, or “lube man,” at West Elk Mine. Mr. Dillon testified that his responsibilities included “keeping] the essential fluids, hydraulic, gear oil ... [and] so forth, at an operable level on the machinery; greasing, washing, and maybe replacing a few minor bits here and there.” The official job requirements included being able to lift fifty *1217 to sixty pounds and being able to swing a sledgehammer.
On April 19, 1999, Mr. Dillon injured his neck and back when the cover on a mining machine fell and struck him. He returned to work on his next scheduled workday, April 23, but told his supervisor, Bob Turner, that he was in a lot of pain. Mr. Turner assigned Mr. Dillon to less physically demanding tasks, such as refueling and servicing trucks. Mr. Dillon saw a doctor on April 30 and again on May 5, and the doctor restricted Mr. Dillon’s work activities to lifting no more than fifteen pounds. The doctor also referred Mr. Dillon to a second doctor, who restricted Mr. Dillon from doing any work for one week, and then released him to work without restrictions.
The second day after he had returned to work, on June 2, Mr. Dillon told supervisor Steve O’Connell that he was in a lot of pain and that his inability to work at his usual speed might endanger himself and others. Mr. O’Connell told Mr. Dillon to go home, and he did. After that day, Mr. Dillon did not return to work at West Elk Mine. That fall, Dr. Robert Fox determined that Mr. Dillon was able to move well and that he had reached “maximum medical improvement.” On January 12, 2000, Dr. Fox gave Mr. Dillon permanent lifting restrictions of no more than fifty pounds maximum and twenty-five pounds occasionally.
Mr. Dillon testified that he twice called Human Resources Manager Edgar Lang-rand to ask when he could return to work. Mr. Langrand responded that Mr. Dillon could return to work only if and when he had no restrictions. On January 24, Mr. Langrand sent Mr. Dillon a letter, informing him that according to Dr. Fox’s reports and recommended lifting restrictions, Mr. Dillon was unable to work. The letter also stated that Mr. Dillon’s short-term disability period had expired and that because he was unable to return to work, he was being fired.
Eventually, Mr. Dillon and three co-plaintiffs filed suit against Mountain Coal, asserting state-law claims as well as discrimination under the ADA. After Mountain Coal filed a pre-trial motion for summary judgment, the district court dismissed two plaintiffs and limited Mr. Dillon and co-plaintiff Michael Clawson to their claims under the ADA. At the close of the plaintiffs’ case, Mountain Coal orally moved for judgment as a matter of law under Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(a), based primarily on its argument that the plaintiffs failed to prove that Mountain Coal regarded them as disabled.
See
42 U.S.C. § 12102(1)(C). The court reserved ruling on the motion, and at the close of all evidence Mountain Coal renewed the motion without further argument. The district court reserved ruling on the motion until after the jury had rendered a verdict. The jury found for both plaintiffs. Mountain Coal then renewed its motion for judgment as a matter of law under Rule 50
1
and filed a detailed brief in support of the motion. The district court granted the motion as to Mr. Dillon, but denied the motion as to Mr. Clawson.
Clawson v. Mountain Coal Co.,
No. 01-CV-02199-MSK-MEH,
Mr. Dillon appeals, asserting three points of error. Of primary importance, he contends that the district court erred in holding that there was insufficient evi *1218 dence for a reasonable jury to find that Mountain Coal regarded Mr. Dillon as disabled. He further argues that Mountain Coal’s motion for judgment as a matter of law was legally insufficient because it did not identify the specific evidence that he had failed to present. Finally, Mr. Dillon asserts that the district court abused its discretion in excluding certain testimony.
II. DISCUSSION
A. “Regarded-As” Claims Under the ADA
The ADA prohibits employment discrimination against individuals with disabilities. 42 U.S.C. § 12112(a).
3
As defined by the ADA, a disability is “(A) a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities ...; (B) a record of such an impairment; or (C) being regarded as having such an impairment.
...” Id.
§ 12102(1)(A)-(C). Where, as in this case, the plaintiff contends that his employer regarded him as disabled, he must show that he has an impairment that “does not substantially limit major life activities but is treated by a covered entity
4
as constituting such limitation.” 29 C.F.R. § 1630.2(i )(1).
5
See also Jones v. United Parcel Serv., Inc.,
Working is a “major life activity.” 29 C.F.R. § 1630.2(i);
EEOC v. Heartway Corp.,
We therefore evaluate a “regarded as” claim under the ADA using a two-step inquiry. First, we must determine whether the employer regarded the employee as significantly restricted in performing his specific job because of an impairment.
See Heartway,
Proving that an employee is regarded as disabled in the major life activity of working takes a plaintiff to the farthest reaches of the ADA. It is a question embedded almost entirely in the employer’s subjective state of mind. Thus, proving the case becomes extraordinarily difficult. Not only must a plaintiff demonstrate that an employer thought he was disabled, he must also show that the employer thought that his disability would prevent him from performing a broad class of jobs. As it is safe to assume employers do not regularly consider the panoply of other jobs their employees could perform, and certainly do not often create direct evidence of such considerations, the plaintiffs task becomes even more difficult.
Id.
at 1162 (quoting
Ross v. Campbell Soup Co.,
B. Sufficiency of the Evidence
We review de novo the district court’s grant of judgment as a matter of law to Mountain Coal.
See Johnson v. Indep. Sch. Dist. No. 3,
In evaluating Mr. Dillon’s “regarded as” claim under the ADA, we must first determine whether Mountain Coal regarded Mr. Dillon as substantially limited in performing his specific job due to an impairment.
See Heartway,
*1220 Still, Mr. Dillon must also show that Mountain Coal regarded him as substantially limited in his ability to perform either a class of jobs or a broad range of jobs in various classes, in the geographic area surrounding West Elk Mine. On this point, Mr. Dillon again emphasizes Mountain Coal’s “no restrictions” policy. That policy, Mr. Dillon argues, shows that Mountain Coal regards Mr. Dillon as substantially limited in performing mining jobs.
The policy, however, only speaks to whether Mountain Coal regarded Mr. Dillon as substantially limited in his ability to work at West Elk Mine. The policy does not reveal “the number and types of jobs utilizing similar training, knowledge, skill or abilities” in the geographic area, as the EEOC regulations require. 29 C.F.R. § 1630.2(j)(3)(ii)(B). Mr. Dillon did not put on other evidence describing the jobs available in the area that fell into the class of “mining jobs,” nor did he produce evidence demonstrating that mining jobs are, in fact, a class of jobs. He therefore produced no evidence from which a reasonable jury could conclude that Mountain Coal regarded him as substantially limited in the ability to perform a class of jobs.
Mountain Coal’s no-restrictions policy also does not, by itself, support a finding that Mountain Coal regarded Mr. Dillon as unable to perform a broad range of jobs in various classes in the geographic area.
See id.
§ 1630.2(j)(3)(ii)(C). Again, the policy only speaks to the jobs at West Elk Mine, and Mr. Dillon did not produce evidence describing the jobs available in the area. We have stated that a single place of employment could include a “broad range of jobs in various classes.”
See Justice v. Crown Cork & Seal Co.,
Thus, while a jury could infer that Mountain Coal considered Mr. Dillon as substantially limited in his ability to work at West Elk Mine, there was no evidence that Mountain Coal regarded him as substantially limited in his ability to work outside of West Elk Mine, or that the jobs within the mine could properly be characterized as a “class of jobs” or a “broad range of jobs.”
Mr. Dillon cites
McKenzie v. Dovala,
Mr. Dillon also points to evidence that Mountain Coal’s safety representative told his co-plaintiff, Mr. Clawson, that he “probably would not be returning to the mining industry.”
Clawson,
Mr. Dillon argues that he and Mr. Claw-son later found positions at two nearby mines, and that their employment was evidence that jobs similar to those at West Elk Mine were available in the geographic area. However, without additional evidence regarding the two men’s specific jobs at those mines, a jury could not conclude that those jobs “utiliz[ed] similar training, knowledge, skills or abilities” as the job Mr. Dillon performed at West Elk Mine. 29 C.F.R. § 1630.2(j)(3)(ii)(B).
Citing authority from the Sixth Circuit, Mr. Dillon argues that Mountain Coal’s reasons for filing him were pretextual, which is evidence that Mountain Coal regarded him as disabled.
See Ross v. Campbell Soup Co.,
We conclude, therefore, that Mr. Dillon did not produce evidence to establish that Mountain Coal regarded him as substantially limited in his ability to perform either a class of jobs or a broad range of jobs in various classes, in the geographic area surrounding West Elk Mine. The evidence was not sufficient to support the jury’s verdict.
C. The Rule 50 Motion
Mountain Coal’s motion for judgment as a matter of law satisfied the requirements set forth under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 50. A motion for judgment as a matter of law “must specify the judgment sought and the law and facts that entitle the movant to the judgment.” Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(a)(2). We consider the sufficiency of Mountain Coal’s pre-verdict Rule 50 motion in isolation from arguments it raised for the first time in its renewed post-verdict Rule 50 motion.
See Marshall v. Columbia Lea Reg’l Hosp.,
In evaluating the sufficiency of a Rule 50 motion, we liberally construe Rule 50’s requirements.
United Int’l Holdings, Inc. v. Wharf (Holdings) Ltd.,
Mr. Dillon asserts that, because Mountain Coal’s Rule 50 motion did not specifically discuss Mr. Dillon’s lack of evidence regarding the job market surrounding West Elk Mine, the motion did not “specify ... the law and facts that entitle the movant to the judgment.” See Fed.R.Civ.P. 50(a)(2). In its motion, Mountain Coal argued that it was the plaintiffs’ burden to demonstrate that Mountain Coal regarded them as substantially limited in the major life activity of working, in either a class of jobs or in a broad range of jobs. Additionally, Mountain Coal contended that “[t]he focus [of the plaintiffs’ evidence] was on the restrictions and on the jobs at Mountain Coal, and there is no evidence that Mountain Coal believed that they couldn’t do jobs in other industries at other mines anywhere outside of the property at West Elk.”
Mountain Coal also referenced Jury Instruction No. 12, which identified the requirements for determining that an employee was regarded by his employer as being substantially limited in the ability to perform either a “class of jobs” or a “broad range of jobs.” 7 After referencing this instruction, the attorney defined both a “class of jobs” and a “broad range of jobs,” based on the EEOC’s guidelines. Both definitions made reference to the jobs available in the geographic area.
We disagree with Mr. Dillon’s contention that the motion gave him inadequate notice about the deficiency in his evidence. Mountain Coal established that the plaintiffs were required to put on evidence that Mountain Coal regarded the plaintiffs as substantially limited in performing either a “class of jobs” or a “broad range of jobs in various classes.” Mountain Coal defined those terms, making it clear that the plaintiffs would need to provide evidence about other jobs in the area to prevail on their claims. In addition, the district court stated that it was “seriously concerned that the record ... is inadequate to establish the requirements for a regarded as claim under the ADA.” We therefore conclude that Mountain Coal’s Rule 50 motion gave the plaintiffs adequate notice regarding the evidence that they needed to produce, and informed both the plaintiffs and the court about “the movant’s position with respect to the motion.”
United Int’l,
D. Excluded Testimony
Finally, we reject Mr. Dillon’s argument that, if we conclude his evidence was insufficient, we should remand for a new trial based on the court’s erroneous exclusion of certain testimony. We review evidentiary rulings for an abuse of discretion.
United States v. Rogers,
556 F.3d
*1223
1130, 1136 (10th Cir.2009). The district court did not allow Mr. Clawson to respond when asked how miners were classified at a mine near West Elk. The court also did not allow John Ballard, a former Mountain Coal employee, to testify as to his position at a second nearby mine. Mr. Dillon asserts that this testimony could have given the jury information about jobs in that area that required similar skill or training as the jobs at West Elk Mine. In neither case, however, did Mr. Dillon’s attorney assert that argument when confronted with the objection. Therefore, the issue was not preserved for appeal.
See United States v. Martinez,
III. CONCLUSION
We agree with the district court’s determination that Mr. Dillon produced insufficient evidence from which a reasonable jury could conclude that Mountain Coal regarded Mr. Dillon as disabled. We also hold that Mountain Coal’s motion for judgment as a matter of law complied with Rule 50, and that the district court did not abuse its discretion in limiting the testimony of certain witnesses. Accordingly, we AFFIRM the district court’s grant of judgment as a matter of law to Mountain Coal.
Notes
. Mountain. Coal characterizes the new motion as a renewed motion under Rule 50(a). Mr. Dillon characterizes it as a Rule 50(b) motion. We agree with Mr. Dillon's conception, but his characterization does not affect our analysis.
. Mr. Clawson and Mountain Coal subsequently settled.
. The current version of the ADA prohibits discrimination against "a qualified individual on the basis of disability....” 42 U.S.C. § 12112(a). The version of the ADA that was law when this suit was filed prohibited discrimination "against a qualified individual with a disability because of the disability of such individual....” 42 U.S.C. § 12112(a) (2002). The change in the statute’s wording does not affect our analysis in this case.
. It is undisputed that Mountain Coal is a covered entity for purposes of the ADA. See 42 U.S.C. § 12111(2) ("The term 'covered entity’ means an employer.... ”).
. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ("EEOC”) regulations explain that "although an individual may have an impairment that does not in fact substantially limit a major life activity, the reaction of others may prove just as disabling. ‘Such an impairment might not diminish a person’s physical or mental capabilities, but could nevertheless substantially limit that person's ability to work as a result of the negative reactions of others to the impairment.' " 29 C.F.R. pt. 1630 app. (quoting
School Bd. v. Arline,
. Of course, as we explained, Mr. Dillon also failed to establish that “mining jobs” constitute a class of jobs.
. We recognize that Mountain Coal was addressing Mr. Clawson's case when explaining the legal requirements for a “regarded as” claim under the ADA. However, because Mr. Dillon argued similar claims, and both plaintiffs bore the burden of demonstrating that Mountain Coal regarded them as disabled, any statement as to the requirements for a successful ADA claim put both plaintiffs on notice as to the evidentiary requirements. Mountain Coal also made it clear that it believed Mr. Dillon had not produced the evidence necessary to support a “regarded as” ADA claim.