Arakji v. Abbott Laboratories

District Court, N.D. California·Decided September 26, 2024·No. 5:24-cv-02202·Unknown

Opinion

Case No. 5:24-cv-02202-EJD ORDER GRANTING MOTIONS TO Plaintiff, DISMISS; GRANTING MOTION v. REGARDING IMPROPER JOINDER; DENYING MOTION TO FURNISH SECURITY; TERMINATING ABBOTT LABORATORIES, et al., MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT Defendants. Re: Dkt. Nos. 12, 15, 16, 33, 39, 54, 55, 56 Pro se Plaintiff, Mazen Arakji (“Arakji”), filed suit against Defendants Abbott Laboratories (“Abbott”), Amazon, Apple Inc. (“Apple”), and Intel Corporation (“Intel”) (collectively, “Defendants”) alleging employment discrimination based on disability, ancestry, religion, and ethnicity pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”), the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (“FEHA”), Title VII, 42 U.S.C. § 2000e2(a) (“Title VII”), and 42 U.S. Code § 1981. See Compl., ECF No. 43.1 Before the Court are three motions to dismiss pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6) filed by Apple, Intel, and Abbott; one motion to dismiss for improper joinder filed by Intel; one motion for an order requiring Arakji to furnish security filed by Abbott; and four motions for summary judgment against all four Defendants filed by Arakji. Apple MTD, ECF No. 12; Intel MTD, ECF No. 15; Intel MTD re Improper Joinder, ECF No. 16; Abbott MTD and Mot. to Furnish Security, ECF No. 39; MSJ re Amazon, ECF No. 33; MSJ re Abbott, ECF No. 54; MSJ re Apple, ECF No. 55; MSJ re Intel, ECF No. 56. All motions are fully briefed. 1 See infra Section II.A. for discussion regarding the Complaint filed at ECF No. 43. Upon careful consideration of the relevant documents, the Court finds this matter suitable for decision without oral argument pursuant to Local Rule 7-9(b). For the reasons explained below, the Court GRANTS Apple, Intel, and Abbott’s motions to dismiss pursuant to Rule 12(b)(6), DENIES Abbott’s motion for an order requiring Arakji furnish security, and TERMINATES AS MOOT Arakji’s motions for summary judgment. Arakji alleges that Defendants refused to hire him on multiple occasions because he has a visible musculoskeletal disability in his left hand, his name is known to be an Arabic and Muslim name, his national origin is Lebanese, and he has Arabic ancestry and ethnic characteristics. Compl. ¶ 1. Arakji earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical and computer engineering and a master’s degree in computer engineering from the University of Colorado Boulder, scoring high grades in each. Id. ¶ 2. In addition to his degrees, Arakji furthered his education with an embedded systems engineering certificate, android development course, iOS development course, and other courses offered by the U.C. Irvine, U.C. San Diego, U.C. Berkeley, Stanford University, and EIT Digital. Id. ¶ 3. Arakji also holds certifications in areas including embedded system design and software engineering. Id. ¶ 4. Arakji once worked for Microsystems (now Oracle) where he was quickly promoted and selected to participate in a program designed for individuals with a high potential to excel. Id. ¶ 5. Arakji also developed various Android and iOS applications for other companies in a short period of time. Id. However, since 2011, Arakji has applied to thousands of jobs, including jobs with Abbott, Amazon, Apple, and Intel, but he has been unable to receive employment. Id. ¶ 6. As to each Defendant, Arakji alleges the following: Abbott Arakji has been applying to Abbott since 2018. Id. ¶ 8. Arakji provided information to Abbott regarding his disability during the application process. Id. ¶ 10. Despite being qualified, Abbott never hired Arakji. Id. ¶ 8. Arakji received his most recent rejection notice from Abbott on September 7, 2023. Id. ¶ 8. In Abbott’s rejection notices, Abbott states that it considered his application, but the interview process was very competitive, and another candidate was selected. Id. ¶ 9. However, Arakji alleges that the positions remained open, and Abbott continued to seek applicants. Id. ¶ 11. Arakji obtained a right-to-sue notice for claims against Abbott from the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) and the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (“DFEH”) on January 16, 2024. Id. ¶¶ 13, 16, 22. Amazon2 Arakji applied to over 100 positions at Amazon and interviewed with Amazon twice since 2016. Id. ¶ 25. Arakji provided information to Amazon regarding his disability during the application process. Id. ¶ 26. Despite being qualified, Amazon never hired Arakji. Id. ¶ 24. Arakji’s most recent application has been stuck in processing since January 8, 2021, so Arakji concluded that it is equivalent to a rejection. Id. ¶ 24. Arakji alleges that the positions he applied for remain open. Id. ¶ 27. Arakji obtained a right-to-sue notice for claims against Amazon from the EEOC and DFEH on January 22, 2024. Id. ¶¶ 29, 32, 35, 38. Apple Arakji applied to over 200 positions at Apple and interviewed with Apple three times since 2012. Id. ¶¶ 40, 41. Arakji provided information to Apple regarding his disability during the application process. Id. ¶ 42. Despite being qualified, Apple never hired Arakji. Id. ¶ 40. Arakji received his most recent rejection notice from Apple on August 7, 2023. Id. Arakji obtained a right-to-sue notice for claims against Apple from the EEOC and DFEH on January 23, 2024. Id. ¶¶ 45, 48, 51, 54. Intel Arakji applied to over 75 jobs at Intel since 2011. Id. ¶¶ 56, 57. Arakji provided information to Intel regarding his disability during the application process. Id. ¶ 58. Despite being qualified, Intel never hired Arakji. Id. ¶ 56. Arakji received his most recent rejection from

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