Ornelas v. Nestle Waters N. America
After plaintiff Fernando Ornelas had worked for defendant Nestl Waters North America, Inc. (Nestl) for 29 years, he was terminated, supposedly for being away from his work station while clocked in and thus falsifying his timecard. Ornelas filed this action, asserting age discrimination and other claims. The trial court granted summary judgment against him. It ruled that he could not prove a prima facie case that he had been terminated based on age; it also ruled that Nestl had proven a legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason for the termination. Ornelas appeals. He argues, among other things, that he introduced evidence sufficient to raise a triable issue of fact as to whether Nestls assertion that he was fired for being away from his work station was pretextual. Court need not reach the issue of pretext, however, because Ornelass claims fail for a more fundamental reason Nestl disproved a prima facie case of unlawful discrimination. Accordingly, Court affirm.
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