At age 60, Manuel Fragante emigrated from the Philippines to Hawaii. In response to a newspaper ad, Fragante applied for an entry-level civil service clerk job with the City of Honolulu's Division of Motor Vehicles and Licensing. The job required constant oral communication with the public, either at the information counter or on the telephone. Fragante scored the highest of 731 test takers on a written examination that tested word usage, grammar, and spelling. As part of the application process, two civil sendee employees who were familiar with the demands of the position interviewed Fragante. They testified that his accent made it difficult to understand him. Fragante was not hired for the position, which was filled by another applicant. Fragante sued, alleging national origin discrimination, in violation of Title VII.
Fragante v. City and County of Honolulu, 888 F.2d 591, Web 1989> U.S. App. Lexis 2636 (United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit)
Does this appear to be an example of national origin discrimination? Why or why not?
Does the company have any valid defenses to a discrimination suit? Provide analysis.