Richard Highbaugh v. Exelead, Inc.

Summary

The Seventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment for Exelead on Richard Highbaugh's Title VII and Section 1981 race discrimination claims and his ADEA age claim, which arose from Exelead's decision to fill a Materials Manager vacancy with an external white candidate in his thirties rather than interview Highbaugh, a Black employee who was 60. Assuming a prima facie case, the panel held that Exelead's stated reason — the hiring manager's belief that the selected candidate had more relevant large-scale management experience — was legitimate, and that Highbaugh failed to show pretext: the explanations given over time were consistent supplements rather than shifting accounts, the qualifications comparison did not objectively show Highbaugh was clearly better, and nothing made the stated reason 'fishy enough' to suggest discrimination. Highbaugh's Section 1981 retaliation claim was not pressed on appeal and was not addressed.