Concluding an age discrimination lawsuit filed in the Northern District of Texas, lawyers with the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) announced in a December 15, 2009 Press Release at http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/12-15-09a.cfm that the City of North Richland Hills will pay $75,000 to a former worker and take remedial action to resolve a case in which EEOC lawyers charged that the City subjected a former technician to age based harassment which resulted in his forced termination or constructive discharge.  According to the EEOC Press Release, EEOC lawyers alleged in the lawsuit that the former employee was ridiculed with age related taunts that he was too old to keep up, made too much money and was too old to do his job.  The EEOC also alleged that after suffering the abusive behavior for several months, the former employee reported the harassment to his supervisor and to the City’s human resources department, but the City failed to take any corrective action and the harassment increased to the point the worker was forced to resign.  A trial lawyer with the EEOC’s Dallas office commented in the Press Release that age related harassment is against the law and should not be tolerated by employers. 

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (”ADEA”) prohibits employment discrimination based on age against employees and applicants 40 years of age or older.  In this regard, the EEOC is a federal agency which enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, including harassment related to age, and the EEOC filed the age harassment lawsuit in Texas after first attempting to reach a voluntary settlement out of court.  Further information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov .

Whether workplace related age harassment occurs in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio or elsewhere, victims of age discrimination may contact the EEOC or a lawyer to determine if an employment discrimination lawsuit is ultimately appropriate in Texas or elsewhere under the particular facts and circumstances of the potential harassment claim.

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act prohibits employment discrimination because of age, and the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) is a federal agency which enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, including workplace age bias.  Employees and applicants 40 years of age and older are protected under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.  In 2008, age discrimination charges received by the EEOC totaled 24,582, representing a 28.7 percent increase over 2007.

In a November Press Release at http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/11-13-09.cfm , EEOC lawyers announced that a credit union company agreed to pay $57,250.00 to settle an EEOC age discrimination lawsuit.  According to the EEOC Press Release, a 61-year-old teller claimed in the case that she was fired in October 2003 because of her age.  An EEOC lawyer quoted in the lawsuit Press Release stated, in part, that statistics show age discrimination remains a serious issue across the country.  Further information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov . 

Whether workplace age bias takes place in Beaumont, Galveston, Houston or elsewhere, victims of age discrimination in employment may contact the EEOC and a lawyer to determine if an age discrimination lawsuit is ultimately appropriate under the particular circumstances and facts of the potential age bias claim.

Attorneys with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) allege in an age discrimination lawsuit filed in Georgia that a retail chain violated federal law when it fired an employee because of her age, according to an EEOC Press Release at http://www.eeooc.gov/press/10-909c.html .  As stated in the EEOC Press Release, agency attorneys charge that the company subjected the employee to discriminatory terms and conditions of employment because of her age, including disparate discipline, prior to her termination.  Such alleged conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (”ADEA”), and, in this regard, the EEOC is a federal agency which enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, including elder employee age discrimination.  EEOC attorneys filed the elder age discrimination lawsuit in federal court after first attempting to reach a voluntary out of court settlement.  Further information about the EEOC is available in the agency’s website at www.eeoc.gov . 

Whether employment related elder age discrimination occurs in Beaumont, Galveston, Houston or elsewhere, elderly victims of workplace ageism may contact the EEOC and an attorney to determine if an elder age discrimination lawsuit is ultimately appropriate under the particular circumstances and facts of the potential employment discrimination claim.

U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) attorneys charge in a Corpus Christi age discrimination lawsuit that a store in Corpus Christi violated federal law by refusing to hire a 61-year-old applicant because of his age.  See, http://www.eeoc.gov/press/9-25-09f.html .  According to a September 25, 2009 EEOC Press Release, the store located on Airline Road in Corpus Christi allegedly refused to hire the applicant into a loss prevention / asset protection position despite his qualifications and 27 years of experience, claiming that the man was “not a good fit and would be too hard to train.”  As stated in the Press Release, a former store employee told the applicant several months after he interviewed for the position that the manager of the Loss Prevention Department felt he was “too old” for the position.  The EEOC Press Release said that the store subsequently hired a number of individuals, most of whom were under 30, and none of whom had experience comparable to the 61-year-old applicant.  Such alleged conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).  EEOC attorneys filed the age discrimination lawsuit in Corpus Christi after first attempting to reach a voluntary out of court settlement.  A trial attorney in the EEOC’s San Antonio Field Office was quoted in the Press Release as saying, in part, that too often employers simply right off older applicants, with age being the determinative factor. 

In Fiscal Year 2008, the EEOC received 24,582 charges alleging age discrimination, and this is an increase of 27 percent from Fiscal Year 2007.  In this regard, the EEOC is a federal agency which enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, including age discrimination.  Further information about the EEOC is available in the agency’s website at www.eeoc.gov .

In a September 22, 2009 Press Release at http://www.eeoc.gov/press/9-22-09.html , the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) announced that its attorneys sued a metal recycling company for age discrimination, alleging that the company violated federal law by refusing to hire a qualified 76-year-old applicant because of his age.  According to the EEOC’s Press Release, the federal lawsuit charges that the older worker applied for the position of diesel mechanic, and, although he was qualified for the position, the company refused to hire him, stating it was looking for someone younger.  EEOC attorneys charge that the company continued to seek applicants for the position, and ultimately hired an individual who was substantially younger than the older worker and who was less qualified.  As stated in the Press Release, discrimination against persons age 40 and over because of age violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).  In this regard, the EEOC is a federal agency which enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, including discrimination against older workers based on their age.  An EEOC attorney quoted in the Press Release stated that “Federal law ensures that older workers have the right to participate in the workplace regardless of age.”  Further information about the EEOC is available at www.eeoc.gov .

Whether employment related age discrimination occurs in Beaumont, Houston, Port Arthur or elsewhere, older worker victims of age bias may contact the EEOC and a lawyer to determine if an age discrimination lawsuit is ultimately appropriate under the particular facts and circumstances of the potential older worker age bias claim.

In an August 20, 2009 Press Release, the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) announced that it has filed an age discrimination lawsuit against AT&T, Inc., a company based in Dallas, Texas, alleging that a class of retired workers were discriminated against by denying them the ability for reemployment solely because they retired under early retirement plans, including the Voluntary Retirement Incentive Program, the Enhanced Pension and Retirement Program or other retirement plan.  See, http://www.eeoc.gov/press/8-20-09.html .  As stated in the Press Release, the effect of this denial of reemployment results in a disproportionate number of older workers not having the same opportunity to apply for reemployment, in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).  According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, the result of the company’s policy is to exclude a class of older workers because of their age from being reemployed by the company regardless of their qualifications.  EEOC Acting Chairman Stuart Ishimaru said, in part, that “This particular case highlights the Commission’s commitment to combating age-based disparate impact discrimination.”  For further information about the EEOC, see the agency’s website at www.eeoc.gov .

The U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) announced in an August 18, 2009 Press Release that a Kansas-based staffing company unlawfully discriminated against a 55-year-old Caucasian employee because of her race and age.  According to the EEOC Press Release, the company provides staffing and administrative services to the federal General Services Administration.  As stated in the Press Release, the EEOC charges in a federal lawsuit that the company violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act by subjecting the female employee to discrimination due to her race and age, and then firing her in retaliation for reporting the unlawful conduct.  More specifically, the lawsuit contends that the employee was subjected to differential treatment by her younger African American supervisor and fired one day after making a complaint.  In this regard, an EEOC attorney quoted in the Press Release said that the female, Caucasion employee “was singled out for unfair treatment by her supervisor [and] … fired after reporting discrimination to her employer.” 

See, http://www.eeoc.gov/press/8-18-09.html .

Whether race and age employment related discrimination occurs in Baytown, Galveston, League City or elsewhere, vicitims of unlawful workplace discrimination may contact the EEOC and an attorney to determine if a race and age discrimination lawsuit is ultimately appopriate under the particular facts and circumstances of the potential employment discrimination claim.

The U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) announced in a July 31, 2009 Press Release that EEOC attorneys filed an age discrimination lawsuit against the City of Greensboro, alleging that the city violated federal law by refusing to hire a qualified 58-year-old job applicant because of his age and, instead, hired younger, less qualified applicants.  More specifically, the Press Release states that the 58-year-old applicant applied for a position with the city as an Electronic Processes Specialist in June 2007.  According to the EEOC, the position generally involved maintenance of the city’s radio communication systems for first responders, and, although the person was qualified for the position, the city selected three substantially younger applicants, all under the age of 40, at least one of whom was less qualified.  See, http://www.eeoc.gov/press/7-31-09b.html .  The EEOC is a federal agency which enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination, including discrimination against persons age 40 and over under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act or ADEA.  In July, the EEOC held a public hearing on age discrimination and barriers to the employment of older workers.  In this regard, information about that hearing may be found at http://www.eeoc.gov/abouteeoc/meetings/7-15-09/index.html .  An EEOC attorney quoted in the Press Release about the age discrimination lawsuit stated as follows: “It is not only unfair for employers to make unfounded assumptions about an individual’s ability to perform based on age, it’s illegal and might subject employers to federal lawsuits.”  As such, victims of age discrimination in the workplace may contact the EEOC and an attorney to determine if an age discrimination lawsuit is ultimately appropriate under the particular facts and circumstances of the potential age discrimination claim.

In two separate lawsuits, the U. S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (”EEOC”) charged municipalities in New York with discriminating against older volunteer firefighters because of their age in violation of federal law, according to a July 30, 2009 EEOC Press Release.  The age discrimination lawsuits filed by EEOC attorneys against the Oyster Bay Fire Department and the Brentwood Fire Department charge the respondents with refusing to allow volunteer firefighters over the age of 62 to accrue credit toward a Length of Service Program, the equivalent of a retirement pension, because of their age.  As a result, senior firefighters lost pension amounts after they turned 62, in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, as stated in the Press Release.  See, http://www.eeoc.gov/press/7-30-09a.html .  An EEOC trial attorney quoted in the EEOC Press Release said that “Firefighters, who volunteer to help people in need, are entitled to fair retirement benefits that are calculated solely based on their service, without regard to their age.” 

Earlier this month, the EEOC held a public hearing on age discrimination and barriers to the employment of older workers.  Additional information about the hearing may be found on the EEOC’s website at http://www.eeoc.gov/abouteeoc/meetings/7-15-09/index.html .

Officials in the east Texas town of Paris said Thursday they are preparing for an influx of black separatists and white supremacists at a planned protest next week over the death of a black man who was run over by a truck and dragged. The Lamar County Commissioner’s Court has created designated zones for protesters to help police maintain order Tuesday, the day a rally organized by the Nation of Islam and the New Black Panther Party is scheduled outside the county courthouse.

The protest is the third related to the death of 24-year-old Brandon McClelland, whose mangled body was found Sept. 16 on a country road outside Paris, about 90 miles northeast of Dallas. Authorities estimated McClelland’s body had been dragged more than 70 feet beneath a vehicle.

Two white men, Shannon Finley and Charles Crostley, were charged with murdering McClelland by running him down in Finley’s pickup after the three friends made a late-night beer run from their dry town across state lines to Oklahoma. But a special prosecutor dismissed the charges last month, citing a lack of evidence, and the men were released after more than eight months in jail.

The previous protests by the Panthers and the Nation of Islam were mostly peaceful and resulted in no arrests. But authorities said there were hints of white supremacist groups showing up this time.

“We have some very specific intel that there would be some counter-protestors — white supremacists, KKK, skinheads — who wish to attend,” said Bill Harris, the first assistant county and district attorney for Lamar County.

At the November and June protests, there were a handful of white supremacists led by Rock Banks, a self-professed grand titan of the East Texas Ku Klux Klan. Words flew in June when Banks waded into the crowd holding aloft a patch depicting a Nazi-era Iron Cross. The KKK, the Nation of Islam and the New Black Panther Party are considered hate groups by the Southern Poverty Law Center. The racial implications of the McClelland case have reminded some of the murder of James Byrd, a black man who was chained by the ankles to a pickup by three white men and dragged to death in 1998 in the east Texas town of Jasper.

Lamar County Judge Chuck Superville said the protest zones are designed to separate members of the Nation of Islam and the Panthers from white supremacists. Law enforcement officials requested the zones as a proactive step to avoid conflict.

Main Street, which runs along the east side of the courthouse, will serve as a dividing line, Superville said. He said he is trying to balance free speech rights with public safety concerns and the desire to keep open the courthouse. “We are going to preserve the peace,” the judge said. “This place is more like Mayberry than Jasper.” Brenda Cherry, a community activist in Paris who leads the Concerned Citizens for Racial Equality group, called the commissioners’ decision “racist and ignorant.”

“They are trying to stifle us and violate our constitutional rights,” she said.

Associated Press