7th Circuit finds small auto dealer exempt from Title VII claims

A terminated employee of a small business sued his former employer for discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The trial court entered summary judgment (dismissal without a trial) in favor of the employer because it employed fewer than 15 employees and therefore wasn’t subject to Title VII. The employee appealed to the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals (whose rulings apply to all Wisconsin employers), arguing the employer was one member of a network of closely related businesses that shared common ownership, management, a web page, and other resources. He argued the employees of all the related businesses should be counted when determining whether the employer met the 15-employee threshold under Title VII. The appellate court affirmed summary judgment, finding that although the businesses were substantially integrated, they sufficiently maintained their corporate forms. Therefore, aggregating the employees for Title VII purposes was inappropriate.

Employer was member of five-entity dealership network

Appleton Auto, LLC (known as Applecars), belonged to a network of five affiliated but corporately distinct used car dealerships in Wisconsin. Applecars alone employed fewer than 15 employees, but if the employees of all five related dealerships were combined, their number would exceed the 15-employee threshold for Title VII purposes.