‘Tomboyish’ Clerk can Proceed with Discrimination Suit

January 26, 2010 (PLANSPONSOR.com) – A federal appellate court has ruled that a female hotel front-desk clerk who was fired by a hotel chain after being told she lacked a "Midwestern girl look" should get a second chance at pursuing her employment discrimination lawsuit.

With that ruling, the 8^th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out a lower-court decision dismissing the case filed by plaintiff Brenna Lewis who alleged she was let go from the Heartland Inns of America of Waterloo, Iowa, because she was too “tomboyish.”

The hotelier’s actions constituted an employment action based on sex stereotypes and that termination violated her rights under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Lewis alleged in her suit.

The 8^th Circuit sent the Lewis suit back to the lower court after ruling that she had proven a strong enough case to be allowed to move forward.

Circuit Judge Diana E. Murphy, writing for the court, quoted a 2004 case by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals involving a firefighter who was born male but subsequently came to identify as a woman. 

“We conclude that (Lewis) has (put forward strong enough proof), for ‘an employer who discriminates against women because. . . they do not wear dresses or makeup, is engaging in sex discrimination because the discrimination would not occur but for the victim's sex.’,” Murphy wrote.

According to Murphy’s decision, Lewis got a job with Heartland in July 2005, first working in positions without direct customer contact.  After 18 months, she began to work shifts on hotel front desks at the chain’s properties.