Case: 22-50135 Document: 00516819692 Page: 1 Date Filed: 07/13/2023 United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit United States Court of Appeals Fifth Circuit FILED July 13, 2023 No. 22-50135 Lyle W. Cayce Clerk Robert Cuellar, Plaintiff—Appellant, versus GEO Group, Incorporated, Defendant—Appellee. Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas USDC No. 5:20-CV-792 Before Dennis, Elrod, and Ho, Circuit Judges. Per Curiam:* Robert Cuellar was employed by GEO Group, Incorporated (“GEO”) as a detention officer. During his employment, he developed health problems that ultimately resulted in a sleep apnea diagnosis. Due to his illness, Cuellar requested that he no longer be scheduled for shifts longer than twelve hours, based on his physician’s recommendation. GEO denied his request, asserting that working shifts longer than twelve hours constituted an essential function * This opinion is not designated for publication. See 5th Cir. R. 47.5. Case: 22-50135 Document: 00516819692 Page: 2 Date Filed: 07/13/2023 No. 22-50135 of Cuellar’s job. Cuellar sued GEO for failure to accommodate and retaliation in violation of Chapter 21 of the Texas Labor Code. He appeals the district court’s grant of summary judgment in GEO’s favor. Because there is no genuine issue of material fact as to whether Cuellar has established a prima facie case on either of his claims, we AFFIRM. I. From 2009 to 2018, Cuellar worked as a detention officer at the South Texas Immigration and Customs Enforcement Processing Center, which is owned and operated by GEO Group. One of the requirements for the job of detention officer was to “work overtime as required,” including “up to sixteen (16) hours within a rolling 24-hour period.” Cuellar would, occasionally, be directed to work ten, twelve, fourteen, or sixteen hour shifts straight in a rolling 24-hour period. In 2013, Cuellar began experiencing symptoms of disordered sleeping, including daytime sleepiness, insomnia, nightmares, sleep deprivation, and snoring. After submitting to a sleep study, he was diagnosed with severe obstructive sleep apnea. Cuellar informed GEO’s human resources administrator, as well as two of the wardens, of his sleep apnea diagnosis and provided them a copy of his sleep study. In 2015, Cuellar filled out a self- identification form, indicating that he had a disability, and returned it to Warden Castro. In 2018, Cuellar twice fell asleep at the wheel of his vehicle after working a 16-hour shift; this resulted once in a collision and once in him veering into oncoming traffic. On May 15, 2018, Cuellar presented his supervisor and the human resources administrator with a note from his physician, which stated that, as a result of Cuellar’s disability, he was medically restricted from working a shift longer than 12 hours and therefore sought an accommodation. On May 23, 2018, GEO placed Cuellar on administrative leave without pay, while 2 Case: 22-50135 Document: 00516819692 Page: 3 Date Filed: 07/13/2023 No. 22-50135 GEO determined if an accommodation was possible. On June 4, 2018, Cuellar was terminated by GEO. Cuellar filed suit in Texas state court on …
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