KRIS KOURTIS, APPELLANT,
v.
EASTERN AIRLINES AND FLORIDA COMMISSION ON HUMAN RELATIONS, APPELLEES
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Kourtis, a 61-year-old employee of Eastern Airlines whose position was eliminated, appealed the Florida Human Relations Commission's dismissal of his age and handicap discrimination complaint as untimely. The court affirmed the dismissal, holding that the 180-day filing deadline was not tolled by his prior complaint to the U.S. Department of Labor.
The filing of a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor does not toll the 180-day filing deadline for complaints to the Florida Human Relations Commission, and instructions from federal labor department personnel cannot estop the state commission from enforcing the statutory time requirements.
[1] A complaint filed with the Florida Human Relations Commission must be filed within 180 days of the alleged violation.
[2] Filing a complaint with the United States Department of Labor does not toll the 180-day filing period for the Florida Human Relations Commission.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Part IX of Chapter 23, Florida Statutes, requires that any person who is aggrieved by a violation of the Act may file a complaint with the Commission within 180 days of the alleged violation.”
Establishes the statutory 180-day filing deadline that governs discrimination complaints to the Commission
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceKourtis was employed by Eastern Airlines since 1949 as a Senior Work Controller. While on four-month sick leave, he was notified his position was bein…
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DOWNEY, Judge.
This appeal concerns an order of the Florida Human Relations Commission (the Commission) denying appellant’s complaint based on discrimination due to age and handicap, and denying a petition for re-determination.
Appellant, age sixty-one, was employed by appellee, Eastern Airlines, since 1949. He worked as a Senior Work Controller in Eastern’s Operations Service Department in Miami, Florida. While on four month sick leave, he was notified that he was being “surplussed” and upon return to work he was formally notified that his position was being eliminated. Eastern intended to place Kourtis on a Special Assignment team with no loss of salary or benefits while Eastern attempted to place him in a new permanent position. However, Kourtis advised Eastern that he elected to take severance pay and early retirement. Several days later Kourtis filed a complaint with the United States Department of Labor, alleging that he had been discriminated against because of his age. The Department of Labor investigated Kourtis’s claim and found it to be without merit. Subsequently, Kourtis initiated this proceeding by filing a complaint with the appellee, Florida Human Rights Commission, pursuant to Part IX of Chapter 23, Florida Statutes (1979). The complaint was dismissed as untimely, whereupon Kourtis filed a petition for re-determination. A hearing was held thereon, argument of counsel considered and the petition denied.
Appellant has posed four questions for our consideration, all of which we have duly considered. However, we find no reversible error demonstrated by any of said questions. The Commission dismissed appellant’s complaint because it was not timely filed. Part IX of Chapter 23, Florida Statutes, requires that any person who is aggrieved by a violation of the Act may file a complaint with the Commission within 180 days of the alleged violation. This period of time was not tolled by the filing of a complaint with the United States Department of Labor. Nor do we believe that instructions given appellant by labor department personnel can be used to estop the Florida Human Relations Commission from enforcing the time periods provided in the statute.
Having fully considered appellant’s contentions and having found no error demonstrated, we affirm the order appealed from.
LETTS, C. J., and ANSTEAD, J., concur.
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Wojick v. Unijax, Inc., 441 So. 2d 1101 (Fla. 4th DCA 1983)…PER CURIAM. Affirmed. See, Kourtis v. Eastern Airlines, 409 So. 2d 139 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982). ANSTEAD, C.J., and HERSEY and DELL, JJ., concur.…
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Duggan v. Nabisco Brands, Inc., 469 So. 2d 929 (Fla. 3d DCA 1985)…PER CURIAM. Affirmed. Kourtis v. Eastern Airlines, 409 So. 2d 139 (Fla. 4th DCA 1982).…
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Williams v. Eckerd Family Youth Alternative, 908 F. Supp. 908 (M.D. Fla. 1995)
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