Administrative Review Board

Administrative Review Board

200 Constitution Ave. NW

Washington, DC 20210-0001

U.S. Department of Labor

In the Matter of:

AZIZ AITYAHIA,

ARB CASE NO. 2019-0068

COMPLAINANT,

v.

ALJ CASE NO. 2018-AIR-00044

DATE: June 9, 2020

MESA AIRLINES,

RESPONDENT.

Appearances:

For the Complainant:

R. Chris Pittard, Esq.; Pittard Law Firm; San Antonio, Texas

For the Respondent:

Stephanie J. Quincy, Esq.; Quarles & Brady LLP; Phoenix, Arizona

Before: James A. Haynes, Heather C. Leslie, and James D. McGinley,

Administrative Appeals Judges

DECISION AND ORDER

PER CURIAM. The Complainant, Aziz Aityahia, filed a retaliation complaint

under the employee protection provision of the Wendell H. Ford Aviation

Investment and Reform Act for the 21st Century (AIR 21)1 with the Department of

Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Complainant

alleged that Respondent Mesa Airlines (Mesa) retaliated against him violation of

49 U.S.C. § 42121 (2000). AIR 21’s implementing regulations are found at 29 C.F.R.

Part 1979 (2018).

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the whistleblower protection provisions of AIR 21.2 OSHA concluded Complainant

suffered an adverse employment action when he was terminated in 2013, but

dismissed the complaint because it was not filed within 90 days of the alleged

adverse action. The case was referred to the Office of Administrative Law Judges

(OALJ) at Complainant’s request. A Department of Labor (DOL) Administrative

Law Judge (ALJ) dismissed Aityahia’s complaint because after holding a hearing

and receiving evidence, he found that Aityahia failed to prove by a preponderance of

the evidence that he suffered an adverse employment action. ALJ Decision and

Order (June 19, 2019) (D. & O.). Alternatively, he found that Respondent

established by clear and convincing evidence that it would not have rehired

Complainant in 2017, even in the absence of the protected activity. Aityahia has

appealed the dismissal of his complaint to the Administrative Review Board

(ARB). We summarily affirm the ALJ’s dismissal.

JURISDICTION AND STANDARD OF REVIEW

The Administrative Review Board has jurisdiction to review the ALJ’s AIR 21

decision pursuant to Secretary’s Order No. 01-2020 (Delegation of Authority and

Assignment of Responsibility to the Administrative Review Board (Secretary’s

discretionary review of ARB decisions)), 85 Fed. Reg. 13,186 (Mar. 6, 2020). The

Board reviews questions of law presented on appeal de novo, but is bound by the

ALJ’s factual findings as long as they are supported by substantial evidence. 29

C.F.R. § 1979.110(b); Yates v. Superior Air Charter, LLC, d/b/a Jetsuite Air, ARB

No. 2017-0061, ALJ No. 2015-AIR-00028, slip op. at 4 (ARB Sept. 26, 2019).

DISCUSSION

AIR 21’s employee protection provisions generally prohibit covered employers

and individuals from retaliating against employees because they provide

information or assist in investigations related to the categories listed in the AIR 21

whistleblower statute. See 49 U.S.C. § 42121(a). To prevail on an AIR 21

Aityahia also filed a claim involving the same facts as this case against the Air Lines

Pilots Association which was dismissed by an ALJ on February 14, 2019. See ALJ No. 2017AIR-00042. This decision was reviewed and affirmed by the ARB by decision dated May 19,

2020. Aityahia v. Air Line Pilots Assoc., ARB No. 2019-0037, ALJ No. 2018-AIR-00042 (ARB

May 19, 2020).

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whistleblower complaint, the employee must prove by a preponderance of the

evidence that he was an employee who engaged in activity the statute protects, that

the employee suffered an adverse employment action, and that the protected

activity was a contributing factor in the employer’s decision to take the adverse

action. See 49 U.S.C. § 42121(b)(2)(B)(iii); 29 C.F.R. §1979.109(a); Hukman v. U.S.

Airways, Inc., ARB No. 2018-0048, ALJ No. 2015-AIR-00003, slip op. at 5 (ARB Jan.

16, 2020). The failure to prove any one of these elements necessarily requires

dismissal of a whistleblower complaint. As the ALJ found that Complainant did not

establish by a preponderance of the evidence that he suffered an adverse

employment action, a required element, we will limit our discussion to this finding.

Initially, we note that the ALJ found that with regard to any alleged adverse

employment action taken in 2013, the 90 day limitations period had run long before

Aityahia filed his complaint, and Aityahia offered no justification for the application

of equitable tolling. D. & O. at 13, n.6. See 49 U.S.C. §42121(b)(1); 29 C.F.R.

§1979.103(d). As this finding is consistent with our prior decision, it is affirmed.

Aityahia v. Air Line Pilots Assoc., ARB No. 2019-0037, supra.

In the case before us, the ALJ thoroughly considered Aityahia’s timely

contention that Mesa’s refusal to rehire him in 2017 was also an adverse

employment action. The ALJ’s analysis, and the facts of this case, readily

demonstrate that Complainant did not establish an adverse employment action in

2017. Accordingly, we adopt and affirm the ALJ’s findings as to this element. The

ALJ credited the training pilots’ assessment of Complainant’s flying proficiency,

which was corroborated by the reviewing officials in 2013. He concluded that the

extensive evidence of record established that Aityahia was not qualified for the

position for which he applied in 2017, and thus the Respondent’s refusal to rehire

him was not an adverse employment action. The ALJ thoroughly explained his

factual and legal findings, and we incorporate them into this decision.3

CONCLUSION

Moreover, we reject Complainant’s contention that this appeal should be reviewed

under the framework of Section 11(c)(2) of the OSH Act. That act does not provide an

administrative appellate remedy for complaints that are dismissed by the Secretary of

Labor.

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Accordingly, we AFFIRM the ALJ’s decision and DISMISS Aityahia’s

complaint.

SO ORDERED.