FEDERAL EXPRESS CORP. v. HOLOWECKI ET AL.
No. 06-1322
SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
Argued November 6, 2007-Decided February 27, 2008
552 U.S. 389
David L. Rose argued the cause for respondents. With him on the brief was Joshua N. Rose.
Toby J. Heytens argued the cause for the United States as amicus curiae urging affirmance. With him on the brief were Acting Solicitor General Garre, Acting Assistant Attorney General Comisac, Dennis J. Dimsey, Lisa J. Stark, Ronald S. Cooper, and Anne Noel Occhialino.*
JUSTICE KENNEDY delivered the opinion of the Court.
This case arises under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA or Act), 81 Stat. 602, as amended,
*Briefs of amici curiae urging reversal were filed for the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America by Lawrence Z. Lorber, James F. Segroves, Robin S. Conrad, and Shane Brennan; and for the Equal Employment Advisory Council et al. by Rae T. Vann, Laura Anne Giantris, and Karen R. Harned.
Paul W. Mollica filed a brief for AARP et al. as amici curiae urging affirmance.
As a cautionary preface, we note that the EEOC enforcement mechanisms and statutory waiting periods for ADEA claims differ in some respects from those pertaining to other statutes the EEOC enforces, such as Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, 78 Stat. 253, as amended,
I
Petitioner, Federal Express Corporation (FedEx), provides mail pickup and delivery services to customers worldwide. In 1994 and 1995, FedEx initiated two programs, designed, it says, to make its 45,000-strong courier network more productive. The programs, “Best Practice Pays” (BPP) and “Minimum Acceptable Performance Standards”
Respondents are 14 current and former FedEx couriers over the age of 40. They filed suit in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on April 30, 2002, claiming, inter alia, that BPP and MAPS violate the ADEA. Asserting that their claims were typical of many couriers nationwide, respondents sought to represent a plaintiffs’ class of all couriers over the age of 40 who were subject to alleged acts of age discrimination by FedEx. The suit maintains that BPP and MAPS were veiled attempts to force older workers out of the company before they would be entitled to receive retirement benefits. FedEx, it is alleged, used the initiatives as a pretext for harassing and discriminating against older couriers in favor of younger ones.
The immediate question before us is the timeliness of the suit filed by one of the plaintiffs below, Patricia Kennedy, referred to here as “respondent.” Petitioner moved to dismiss respondent‘s action, contending respondent had not filed her charge with the EEOC at least 60 days before filing suit, as required by
The agency labels Form 283 an “Intake Questionnaire.” Respondent attached to the questionnaire a signed affidavit describing the alleged discriminatory employment practices in greater detail. The District Court determined these documents were not a charge and granted the motion to dismiss. No. 02 Civ. 3355(LMM) (SDNY, Oct. 9, 2002), App. to Pet. for Cert. 39a. An appeal followed, and the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit reversed. See 440 F. 3d 558, 570 (2006). We granted certiorari to consider whether respondent‘s filing was a charge, 551 U. S. 1102 (2007), and we now affirm.
This case presents two distinct questions: What is a charge as the ADEA uses that term? And were the documents respondent filed in December 2001 a charge?
A
The relevant statutory provision states:
“No civil action may be commenced by an individual under [the ADEA] until 60 days after a charge alleging unlawful discrimination has been filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission....
“Upon receiving such a charge, the Commission shall promptly notify all persons named in such charge as prospective defendants in the action and shall promptly seek to eliminate any alleged unlawful practice by informal methods of conciliation, conference, and persuasion.”
29 U. S. C. § 626(d) .
The Act does not define charge. While EEOC regulations give some content to the term, they fall short of a comprehensive definition. The agency has statutory authority to issue regulations, see
One of the regulations,
Even with the aid of the regulations the meaning of charge remains unclear, as is evident from the differing positions of the parties now before us and in the Courts of Appeals. Petitioner contends an Intake Questionnaire cannot be a charge unless the EEOC acts upon it. On the other hand some Courts of Appeals, including the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, take a position similar to the Government‘s in this case, that an Intake Questionnaire can constitute a charge if it expresses the filer‘s intent to activate the EEOC‘s enforcement processes. See, e. g., Steffen v. Meridian Life Ins. Co., 859 F. 2d 534, 542 (CA7 1988). A third view, which seems to accord with respondent‘s position, is that all completed Intake Questionnaires are charges. See, e. g., Casavantes v. California State Univ., Sacramento, 732 F. 2d 1441, 1443 (CA9 1984).
B
In support of her position that the Intake Questionnaire she filed, taken together with the attached six-page affidavit, meets the regulatory definition of a charge, respondent places considerable emphasis on what might be described as the regulations’ catchall or saving provision,
The EEOC‘s view, as expressed in the Government‘s amicus brief, however, is that the regulations identify certain requirements for a charge but do not provide an exhaustive definition. As such, not all documents that meet the minimal requirements of
The question, then, becomes how to interpret the scope of the regulations. Just as we defer to an agency‘s reasonable interpretations of the statute when it issues regulations in the first instance, see Chevron, supra, the agency is entitled to further deference when it adopts a reasonable interpretation of regulations it has put in force. See Auer v. Robbins, 519 U. S. 452 (1997). Under Auer, we accept the agency‘s position unless it is ““plainly erroneous or inconsistent with the regulation.““” Id., at 461 (quoting Robertson v. Methow Valley Citizens Council, 490 U. S. 332, 359 (1989)).
In accord with this standard we accept the agency‘s position that the regulations do not identify all necessary components of a charge; and it follows that a document meeting the requirements of
This does not resolve the case. While we agree with the Government that the regulations do not state all the elements a charge must contain, the question of what additional elements are required remains. On this point the regulations are silent.
The EEOC submits that the proper test for determining whether a filing is a charge is whether the filing, taken as a whole, should be construed as a request by the employee for the agency to take whatever action is necessary to vindicate her rights. Brief for United States as Amicus Curiae 15. The EEOC has adopted this position in the Government‘s amicus brief and in various internal directives it has issued to its field offices over the years. See 1 EEOC Compliance Manual §2.2(b), p. 2:0001 (Aug. 2002); Memorandum from Elizabeth M. Thornton, Director, Office of Field Programs, EEOC, to All District, Area, and Local Office Directors et al. (Feb. 21, 2002), online at http://www.eeoc.gov/charge/memo-2-21-02.html (hereinafter Thornton Memo) (all Internet materials as visited Feb. 21, 2008, and available in Clerk of Court‘s case file); Memorandum from Nicholas M. Inzeo, Director, Office of Field Programs, EEOC, to All District, Field, Area, and Local Office Directors et al. (Aug. 13, 2007), online at http://www.eeoc.gov/charge/memo-8-13-07.html. The Government asserts that this request-to-act requirement is a reasonable extrapolation of the agency‘s regulations and that, as a result, the agency‘s position is dispositive under Auer.
The Government acknowledges the regulations do not, on their face, speak to the filer‘s intent. To the extent the request-to-act requirement can be derived from the text of the regulations, it must spring from the term charge. But, in this context, the term charge is not a construct of the agency‘s regulations. It is a term Congress used in the underlying statute that has been incorporated in the regulations by the agency. Thus, insofar as they speak to the fil-
It is not necessary to hold that Auer deference applies to the agency‘s construction of the term charge as it is used in the regulations, however. For even if Auer deference is inapplicable, we would accept the agency‘s proposed construction of the statutory term, and we turn next to the reasons for this conclusion.
D
In our view the agency‘s policy statements, embodied in its compliance manual and internal directives, interpret not only the regulations but also the statute itself. Assuming these interpretive statements are not entitled to full Chevron deference, they do reflect ““a body of experience and informed judgment to which courts and litigants may properly resort for guidance.“” Bragdon v. Abbott, 524 U. S. 624, 642 (1998) (quoting Skidmore v. Swift & Co., 323 U. S. 134, 139-140 (1944)). As such, they are entitled to a “measure of respect” under the less deferential Skidmore standard. Alaska Dept. of Environmental Conservation v. EPA, 540 U. S. 461, 487, 488 (2004); United States v. Mead Corp., 533 U. S. 218, 227-239 (2001).
Under Skidmore, we consider whether the agency has applied its position with consistency. Mead Corp., supra, at 228; Good Samaritan Hospital v. Shalala, 508 U. S. 402, 417 (1993). Here, the relevant interpretive statement, embodied in the compliance manual and memoranda, has been binding on EEOC staff for at least five years. See Thornton Memo, supra. True, as the Government concedes, the agency‘s implementation of this policy has been uneven. See Brief for
These undoubted deficiencies in the agency‘s administration of the statute and its regulatory scheme are not enough, however, to deprive the agency of all judicial deference. Some degree of inconsistent treatment is unavoidable when the agency processes over 175,000 inquiries a year. Id., at 19, n. 10. And although one of the policy memoranda the Government relies upon was circulated after we granted certiorari, the position the document takes is consistent with the EEOC‘s previous directives. We see no reason to assume the agency‘s position-that a charge is filed when the employee requests some action-was framed for the specific purpose of aiding a party in this litigation. Cf. Bowen v. Georgetown Univ. Hospital, 488 U. S. 204, 212-213 (1988).
The EEOC, moreover, has drawn our attention to the need to define charge in a way that allows the agency to fulfill its distinct statutory functions of enforcing antidiscrimination laws and disseminating information about those laws to the public. Cf. Barnhart v. Walton, 535 U. S. 212, 225 (2002) (noting that deference is appropriate in “matters of detail related to [an agency‘s] administration” of a statute). The agency‘s duty to initiate informal dispute resolution processes upon receipt of a charge is mandatory in the ADEA context. See
For efficient operations, and to effect congressional intent, the agency requires some mechanism to separate information requests from enforcement requests. Respondent‘s proposed standard, that a charge need contain only an allegation of discrimination and the name of the employer, falls short in this regard. Were that stripped-down standard to prevail, individuals who approach the agency with questions could end up divulging enough information to create a charge. This likely would be the case for anyone who completes an Intake Questionnaire-which provides space to indicate the name and address of the offending employer and asks the individual to answer the question, “What action was taken against you that you believe to be discrimination?” App. to Pet. for Cert. 43a. If an individual knows that reporting this minimal information to the agency will mandate the agency to notify her employer, she may be discouraged from consulting the agency or wait until her employment situation has become so untenable that conciliation efforts would be futile. The result would be contrary to Congress’ expressed desire that the EEOC act as an information provider and try to settle employment disputes through informal means.
For these reasons, the definition of charge respondent advocates-i. e., that it need conform only to
Some Courts of Appeals have referred to a ““manifest intent“” test, under which, in order to be deemed a charge, the filing must demonstrate “an individual‘s intent to have the agency initiate its investigatory and conciliatory processes.” 440 F. 3d, at 566 (case below); see also Wilkerson v. Grinnell Corp., 270 F. 3d 1314, 1319 (CA11 2001); Steffen, 859 F. 2d, at 543; Bihler v. Singer Co., 710 F. 2d 96, 99 (CA3 1983). If this formulation suggests the filer‘s state of mind is somehow determinative, it misses the point. If, however, it means the filing must be examined from the standpoint of an objective observer to determine whether, by a reasonable construction of its terms, the filer requests the agency to activate its machinery and remedial processes, that would be in accord with our conclusion.
It is true that under this permissive standard a wide range of documents might be classified as charges. But this result is consistent with the design and purpose of the ADEA. Even in the formal litigation context, pro se litigants are held to a lesser pleading standard than other parties. See Estelle v. Gamble, 429 U. S. 97, 106 (1976) (Pro se pleadings are to be “liberally construed“). In the administrative context now before us it appears pro se filings may be the rule, not the exception. The ADEA, like Title VII, sets up a “remedial scheme in which laypersons, rather than lawyers, are expected to initiate the process.” EEOC v. Commercial Of-
Reasonable arguments can be made that the agency should adopt a standard giving more guidance to filers, making it clear that the request to act must be stated in quite explicit terms. A rule of that sort might yield more consistent results. This, however, is a matter for the agency to decide in light of its experience and expertise in protecting the rights of those who are covered by the Act. For its decisions in this regard the agency is subject to the oversight of the political branches. Cf. National Cable & Telecommunications Assn. v. Brand X Internet Services, 545 U. S. 967, 980 (2005) (“Filling these gaps [in ambiguous statutes] involves difficult policy choices that agencies are better equipped to make than courts“). We find no reason in this case to depart from our usual rule: Where ambiguities in statutory analysis and application are presented, the agency may choose among reasonable alternatives.
E
Asserting its interest as an employer, petitioner urges us to condition the definition of charge, and hence an employee‘s ability to sue, upon the EEOC‘s fulfilling its mandatory duty to notify the charged party and initiate a conciliation process. In petitioner‘s view, because the Commission must act “[u]pon receiving such a charge,”
The agency rejects this view, as do we. As a textual matter, the proposal is too artificial a reading of the statute to accept. The statute requires the aggrieved individual to file
III
Having determined that the agency acted within its authority in formulating the rule that a filing is deemed a charge if the document reasonably can be construed to request agency action and appropriate relief on the employee‘s behalf, the question is whether the filing here meets this test. The agency says it does, and we agree. The agency‘s determination is a reasonable exercise of its authority to apply its own regulations and procedures in the course of the routine administration of the statute it enforces.
Respondent‘s completed intake form contained all of the information outlined in
In this case, however, the completed questionnaire filed in December 2001 was supplemented with a detailed six-page affidavit. At the end of the last page, respondent asked the agency to “[p]lease force Federal Express to end their age discrimination plan so we can finish out our careers absent the unfairness and hostile work environment created within their application of Best Practice/High-Velocity Culture Change.” Id., at 273. This is properly construed as a request for the agency to act.
Petitioner says that, in context, the statement is ambiguous. It points to respondent‘s accompanying statement that “I have been given assurances by an Agent of the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission that this Affidavit will be considered confidential by the United States Government and will not be disclosed as long as the case remains open unless it becomes necessary for the Government to produce the affidavit in a formal proceeding.” Id., at 266. Petitioner argues that if respondent intended the affidavit to
Petitioner notes that respondent did file a Form 5 (a formal charge) with the EEOC but only after she filed her complaint in the District Court. This shows, petitioner argues, that respondent did not intend the earlier December 2001 filing to be a charge; otherwise, there would have been no reason for the later filing. What matters, however, is whether the documents filed in December 2001 should be interpreted as a request for the agency to act. Postfiling conduct does not nullify an earlier, proper charge.
Documents filed by an employee with the EEOC should be construed, to the extent consistent with permissible rules of interpretation, to protect the employee‘s rights and statutory remedies. Construing ambiguities against the drafter may be the more efficient rule to encourage precise expression in other contexts; here, however, the rule would undermine the remedial scheme Congress adopted. It would encourage individuals to avoid filing errors by retaining counsel, increasing both the cost and likelihood of litigation.
IV
The Federal Government interacts with individual citizens through all but countless forms, schedules, manuals, and
The employer‘s interests, in particular, were given short shrift, for it was not notified of respondent‘s complaint until she filed suit. The court that hears the merits of this litigation can attempt to remedy this deficiency by staying the proceedings to allow an opportunity for conciliation and settlement. True, that remedy would be imperfect. Once the adversary process has begun a dispute may be in a more rigid cast than if conciliation had been attempted at the outset.
This result is unfortunate, but, at least in this case, unavoidable. While courts will use their powers to fashion the best relief possible in situations like this one, the ultimate responsibility for establishing a clearer, more consistent process lies with the agency. The agency already has made some changes to the charge-filing process. See Brief for United States as Amicus Curiae 3, n. 2 (noting that the Intake Questionnaire form respondent filed has been replaced with a reworded form). To reduce the risk of further misunderstandings by those who seek its assistance, the agency should determine, in the first instance, what additional revisions in its forms and processes are necessary or appropriate.
The judgment of the Court of Appeals is affirmed.
It is so ordered.
Today the Court decides that a “charge” of age discrimination under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) is whatever the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) says it is. The filing at issue in this case did not state that it was a charge and did not include a charge form; to the contrary, it included a form that expressly stated it was for the purpose of “pre-charge” counseling. What is more, the EEOC did not assign it a charge number, notify the employer of the complainant‘s1 allegations, or commence enforcement proceedings. Notwithstanding these facts, the Court concludes, counterintuitively, that respondent‘s filing is a charge because it manifests an intent for the EEOC to take “some action.” Ante, at 400. Because the standard the Court applies is broader than the ordinary meaning of the term “charge,” and because it is so malleable that it effectively absolves the EEOC of its obligation to administer the ADEA according to discernible standards, I respectfully dissent.
I
As the Court notes, the ADEA directs the agency to take certain actions upon receipt of a “charge” but does not define that word. Ante, at 395. Because there is nothing to suggest that Congress used “charge” as a term of art, we must construe it “in accordance with its ordinary or natural meaning.” See FDIC v. Meyer, 510 U. S. 471, 476 (1994). Dictionaries define a “charge” as an accusation or indictment.
See, e. g., American Heritage Dictionary 312 (4th ed. 2000); Webster‘s Third New International Dictionary 377 (1993). In legal parlance, a “charge” is generally a formal allegation of wrongdoing that initiates legal proceedings against an alleged wrongdoer. In criminal law, for example, a charge is defined as “[a] formal accusation of an offense as a preliminary step to prosecution.” Black‘s Law Dictionary 248 (8th ed. 2004). Similarly, in this context, a “charge” is a formal accusation of discrimination that objectively manifests an intent to initiate enforcement proceedings against the employer. Just as a complaint or police report that describes the commission of a crime is not a “charge” under the criminal law, so too here, a document that merely describes the alleged discrimination and requests the EEOC‘s assistance, but does not objectively manifest an intent to initiate enforcement proceedings, is not a “charge” within the meaning of the ADEA.This understanding of a “charge” is common in administrative law. The regulations governing allegations of unlawful employment practices at the Government Accountability Office, for example, define “charge” as “any request filed ... to investigate any matter” within the jurisdiction of the agency.
The ordinary understanding of the term “charge” applies equally in the employment discrimination context, where a charge is a formal accusation that an employer has violated, or will violate, employment discrimination laws. See
II
The cumulative effect of two aspects of respondent‘s documents, the Court holds, illustrates that she filed a charge of discrimination: first, her request in her affidavit that the agency take action, and second, her marking of a box on the questionnaire form consenting to the release of her identity to her employer, Federal Express Corporation (FedEx). Ante, at 405-406. In my view, neither of these factors, separately or together, objectively indicates that respondent intended to initiate the EEOC‘s processes.
The last substantive paragraph of respondent‘s affidavit said: “Please force Federal Express to end their age discrimination . . . .” App. 273. But the issue here is not whether respondent wanted the EEOC to cause the com
Aside from revealing the ambiguity in its definition of a “charge,” the Court‘s constructions stretch the term far beyond what it can bear. A mere request for help from a complainant—who, the Court acknowledges, may “have no detailed knowledge of the relevant statutory mechanisms and agency processes,” ante, at 403—cannot be equated with
Even if respondent‘s statement, viewed in isolation, could reasonably be understood as reflecting the requisite intent, it must be viewed in context. It is clear that respondent‘s filing, taken as a whole, did not amount to a request for the EEOC to commence enforcement proceedings. In fact, respondent‘s affidavit is replete with indications of an intent not to commence formal agency action. The entire first paragraph is an extensive statement that respondent had been assured her affidavit would be kept confidential, App. 266, suggesting that she did not intend the document to initiate enforcement proceedings, which would require the EEOC to notify FedEx of her allegations. See 1 EEOC Manual §2.2(b), at 2:0001 (stating that correspondence expressing concerns about confidentiality should not be treated as a charge). She identified the document as a “complaint.” App. 266. And although the document was notarized and respondent attested to its truthfulness, nowhere did she state that she authorized the EEOC to attempt to resolve the dispute. Id., at 266-274. Finally, the affidavit was attached to the intake questionnaire, which also gave no objective indication of any intent to activate the EEOC‘s enforcement proceedings.
As the Court concedes, the agency would not consider respondent‘s intake questionnaire a charge. Ante, at 405. In
The Court apparently believes that these objective indicators are trumped by the fact that respondent marked the
In comparison to the intake questionnaire, the “Charge of Discrimination” form contains a number of objective indications that it will trigger the agency‘s enforcement processes. Indeed, its very title clearly indicates that it is a charge, and it contains a space for a charge number. 1 EEOC Manual Exh. 2-C, at 2:0009. Although both forms require the complainant to sign and attest that the information is correct, only the charge of discrimination requests an attestation that the complainant intends to initiate the agency‘s procedures. Just above the space for the complainant‘s signature, the form states “I want this charge filed with both the EEOC and the State or local Agency, if any. I will advise the agencies if I change my address or telephone number and I will cooperate fully with them in the processing of my charge in accordance with their procedures.” Ibid. The form notes “Charging Party” at the bottom of the space for the signature. Ibid. And it states on the back that “[t]he purpose of the charge, whether recorded initially on this form or in some other way reduced to writing and later recorded on this form, is to invoke the jurisdiction of the Commission.” Id., at 2:0010. Also on the back, under “ROUTINE USES,” the charge of discrimination states that “[i]nformation provided on this form will be used by Commission employees to guide the Commission‘s investigatory activities.” Ibid. Although the EEOC prefers to receive a completed charge form, see Brief for United States as Amicus Curiae 18, n. 9
For the reasons I have described, respondent‘s intake questionnaire and attached affidavit do not objectively indicate that she intended to initiate the EEOC‘s enforcement processes. The Court‘s conclusion that the two factors “were enough to bring the entire filing within the definition of charge,” ante, at 406, is not supported by the facts and, in my view, reveals that the Court‘s standard is sufficiently vacuous to permit the agency‘s post hoc interpretation of a document to control. But we cannot, under the guise of deference, sanction an agency‘s use of a standard that the agency has not adequately explained. Cf., e. g., Pearson v. Shalala, 164 F. 3d 650, 660-661 (CADC 1999) (equating an agency‘s denial of a party‘s request based on the application of a vague term with simply saying “no” without explanation).
The malleability of the Court‘s test is further revealed by its statement that “[t]here might be instances where the indicated discrimination is so clear or pervasive that the agency could infer from the allegations themselves that action is requested and required.” Ante, at 405. The clarity or pervasiveness of alleged discrimination is irrelevant to the employee‘s intent to file a charge. Although the Court states that the “agency is not required to treat every completed Intake Questionnaire as a charge,” ibid., it apparently would permit the EEOC to do so, because under the Court‘s test the EEOC can infer intent from circumstances—such as “clear
III
Yet another indication that respondent‘s documents did not objectively manifest an intent to initiate the EEOC‘s enforcement processes is that the agency did not treat them as a charge. It did not assign a charge number, and it did not notify FedEx or commence its enforcement proceedings. This is not surprising: The EEOC accepts charges via a thorough intake process6 in which completed intake questionnaires are not typically viewed as charges, but are used to assist the EEOC in developing the charge. A complainant visiting an EEOC office may be asked to complete an intake questionnaire. See EEOC FAQ, Answer to “How do I file a charge of employment discrimination?” online at https://eeoc.custhelp.com. An EEOC investigator then conducts a precharge interview, 1 EEOC Manual §2.4, at 2:0001; 2 B. Lindemann & P. Grossman, Employment Discrimination
Charges are thus typically completed and filed by the agency, not the complainant. See Edelman v. Lynchburg College, 535 U. S. 106, 115, n. 9 (2002) (“The general practice of EEOC staff members is to prepare a formal charge of discrimination for the complainant to review and to verify” (citing Brief for United States et al. as Amici Curiae 24)); EEOC FAQ, Answers to “Where can I obtain copies of the forms to file a charge?” (stating that the agency‘s policy is not to provide blank charge forms); “How do I file a charge of employment discrimination?” (“When the field office has all the information it needs, you will be counseled regarding the strengths and weaknesses of a potential charge and/or you will receive a completed charge form (Form 5) for your signature“), online at https://eeoc.custhelp.com. Once the charge is complete, the EEOC notifies the employer of the charge, usually attaching a copy of the completed charge form. 1 EEOC Manual §3.6, at 3:0001 (“While
To be sure, the EEOC is prepared to accept charges by other methods. If the complainant cannot or will not visit an EEOC office, an investigator may conduct the precharge interview and take the charge by telephone, see 1 EEOC Manual §§ 2.3, 2.4, at 2:0001, but the agency must reduce the allegations to writing before they will be considered a charge, see
Thus, while the EEOC does not typically view an intake questionnaire as a charge, I would not rule out the possibility that, in appropriate circumstances, an intake questionnaire, like other correspondence, could contain the elements necessary to constitute a charge. But an intake questionnaire—even one accompanied by an affidavit—should not be construed as a charge unless it objectively indicates an intent to initiate the EEOC‘s enforcement processes. As I have explained, respondent‘s intake questionnaire and attached affidavit fall short of that standard. I would hold that the documents respondent filed with the EEOC were not a charge and thus did not preserve her right to sue.
The implications of the Court‘s decision will reach far beyond respondent‘s case. Today‘s decision does nothing—ab
For these reasons, I would reverse the judgment below.