Tag Archives: Age Discrimination

by | April 30, 2014 · 8:38 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Three Fired Workers Sue Comfort Inn in South Portland”

“…Parker’s lawsuit alleges she was closely scrutinized and was falsely accused of wrongdoing after reporting the harassment. She was fired in February 2011 for violating the hotel’s confidentiality policy. Image The lawsuit alleges she was discriminated against because of her age, which is now 69…”

Three former employees have sued the Comfort Inn in South Portland, alleging they were fired after reporting sexual harassment by a hotel maintenance worker.

The women allege in three separate lawsuits that they faced discrimination and were subsequently fired, all in 2011, after reporting that one of them was repeatedly sexually harassed by the male worker.

For more: http://bit.ly/1koKgyP

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by | December 26, 2013 · 10:20 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: California Restaurant Ordered To Pay $5.68 Million In “Age Discrimination” Lawsuit; Acted With “Fraud & Malice” After Terminating Four “Older” Women

“…a second phase of trial the same day, the jury added a combined total of $4 million in punitive damages after finding that the restaurant Hospitality Industry Discrimination Lawsuitsacted with fraud, oppression and/or malice after terminating all four, then replacing them within a short time with younger women in their 20s…the restaurant was advertising for the plaintiffs’ replacements even after promising them that their minimum-wage jobs were safe, according to their attorney…”

Four former servers at a Woodland Hills restaurant were collectively awarded $5.68 million in a lawsuit alleging they were laid off from their jobs because of their ages. The plaintiffs, Martha Aboulafia, 61, Cheryl B. Colgin, 61, Regina Greene, 49, and Patricia Monica, 70, had a combined 47 years of service at Cable’s Restaurant at 20929 Ventura Blvd. All were let go by the restaurant’s new owner in 2010, according to trial testimony.

The women sued Cable’s and its owners, GACN Inc., in Los Angeles Superior Court in September 2011, alleging age discrimination and wrongful termination. On Dec. 17, a jury deliberated for less than two hours before unanimously awarding a combined $1.68 million in compensatory damages to the women for lost wages and emotional distress.

For more:  http://www.dailynews.com/business/20131224/4-woodland-hills-restaurant-workers-awarded-57m-in-age-discriminaton-lawsuit

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by | December 10, 2013 · 6:47 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: National Restaurant Chain Settles “Age Discrimination” Lawsuit With EEOC For $575,000; “Discriminatory Barriers To Hiring” For Applicants Over 40

Ruby Tuesday, Inc. will pay $575,000 and provide significant equitable relief to settle a class age discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S Equal Equal Employment Opportunity CommissionEmployment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the agency announced today. The EEOC alleged that Ruby Tuesday engaged in a pattern or practice of age discrimination against job applicants who were 40 years of age or older at six of the chain’s restaurants located in West Mifflin, Greensburg, Altoona, Du Bois, and Indiana, Pa., and in Beachwood, Ohio, in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA).

The restaurant chain also failed to preserve employment records, including employment applications, as required by the ADEA and EEOC regulations, the EEOC charged in its lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court of the Western District of Pennsylvania (EEOC v. Ruby Tuesday, Inc., Civil Action No. 09-1330).

“This case demonstrates the agency’s ongoing commitment to challenge discriminatory barriers to hiring,” said EEOC General Counsel David Lopez.  “Vigorous law enforcement efforts on behalf of older workers are critical to the EEOC’s mission to eradicate barriers to employment.”

EEOC District Director Spencer H. Lewis, Jr. said, “The EEOC is committed to combatting unlawful age discrimination in the workplace and will hold employers responsible if they make hiring decisions based on age rather than the applicant’s ability to do the job.”

In addition to the $575,000 in monetary relief, the three-and-one-half-year consent decree resolving the lawsuit enjoins Ruby Tuesday from engaging in future age discrimination or retaliation and provides substantial non-monetary relief at the affected Ruby Tuesday locations.

Among other things, Ruby Tuesday, Inc. will:

  • Implement numerical goals for hiring and recruitment of job applicants age 40 and older at the affected locations;
  • Review its job advertisements to make certain they do not violate the ADEA’s prohibitions against age discrimination;
  • Conduct audits, including random reviews of hiring decisions, to ensure non-discrimination and compliance with the terms of the consent decree;
  • Evaluate the job performance of people with hiring authority for the six stores named in the consent decree and set their compensation (including bonuses), in part, based on their degree of success in helping Ruby Tuesday achieve its goals of ensuring that its recruitment and hiring practices provide equal employment opportunities for people who are 40 or older;
  • Designate a decree compliance monitor for oversight of compliance with the requirements of the ADEA and the terms of the consent decree;
  • Provide extensive training on the requirements of the ADEA and the consent decree to the decree compliance monitor, human resources personnel and hiring authorities of the six stores named in the consent decree; and
  • Report to the EEOC and keep records about its hiring practices and compliance with the consent decree.

Philadelphia Regional Attorney Debra M. Lawrence added, “We are pleased that Ruby Tuesday worked with us to craft a comprehensive settlement that will benefit all employees and applicants.  In addition to the monetary compensation for the class members, the extensive training and equitable measures are designed to improve recruitment and hiring of older workers and protect all applicants from age discrimination.”

According to its website, www.rubytuesday.com, Ruby Tuesday, Inc. has nearly 800 company-owned and franchised restaurants and more than 40,000 corporate and franchise team members.

Eliminating barriers in recruitment and hiring, especially class-based recruitment and hiring practices that discriminate against racial, ethnic and religious groups, older workers, women, and people with disabilities, is one of six national priorities identified by the EEOC’s Strategic Enforcement Plan.

The Philadelphia District Office of the EEOC oversees Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia and parts of New Jersey and Ohio.  The EEOC enforces federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination.  Further information about the agency is available at its website, www.eeoc.gov.

For more: http://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/newsroom/release/12-9-13.cfm

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by | February 6, 2013 · 8:11 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: Louisiana Hotel Sued By Lobby Concierge For “Age Discrimination”

“…she was terminated in June 2012 from her position as a lobby concierge. At the time of her termination, she Hospitality Industry Lawsuitwas 53 years old…the plaintiff is asking for an award of damages for loss of pay, pain and suffering, mental anguish and distress, medical expenses, interest, and attorney’s fees…”

A former Ritz-Carlton concierge has filed an age discrimination lawsuit claiming she was terminated from her position due to her age and not because she left her shift two hours earlier than scheduled. Claudette Breve filed suit against The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Co. on Jan. 11 in federal court in New Orleans.

Breve began working at the Marriott Hotel in New Orleans in February 1998 and transferred to the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in September  2000.

According to the court record, the defendant states it terminated Breve from her position because she violated hotel policies by leaving work early without the authorization of her supervisor. In response, Breve admits she left her shift early and states that she had arranged for another concierge to cover her shift. The other concierge failed to complete Breve’s shift and the replacement concierge arrived late for a shift. Breve and the person she arranged to complete her shift were fired over the incident, court documents state.

The defendant is accused violating the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

For more:  http://louisianarecord.com/news/248884-ritz-carlton-concierge-files-age-discrimination-lawsuit-after-termination

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by | September 6, 2012 · 6:07 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Risks: California Restaurant Chain Faces Class Action Lawsuit For "Race, Color And Age Discrimination"

The suit alleges that In-N-Out Burger “recruits, hires and maintains a work force that is predominantly under the age of 40 and/or non-African-American.”…the suit also seeks back pay as well as compensatory damages and punitive damages on behalf of people who have been unlawfully denied employment with In-N-Out Burger.

A Berkeley law firm has filed a class action lawsuit alleging that Irvine-based restaurant chain In-N-Out Burger maintains hiring practices that discriminate on the basis of race, color and age. The suit, which was filed in Alameda County Superior Court on Tuesday, was filed on behalf of two black men from Oakland over the age of 40 who recently applied for jobs at In-N-Out Burger restaurants in Oakland and San Francisco but weren’t hired.

The suit says both men were qualified for the jobs they applied for and alleges that they weren’t hired because of their race and their age.

The restaurant chain has 210 restaurants in California and thousands of employees but the suit charges that “very few” are over 40 and/or black.

Steve Tidrick, the attorney for the plaintiffs, said the suit alleges that In-N-Out Burger has “a pervasive policy of discrimination on the basis of race, color and age” in its hiring practices and seeks to end those practices through injunctive relief.

For more:  http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_21477996/oakland-lawsuit-accuses-n-out-burger-racial-and

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by | March 18, 2012 · 7:56 am

Hospitality Industry Employment Risks: Hotel Management Must Use Consistent Hiring And Firing Procedures To Prevent "Age Discriminiation Lawsuits"

  • Initial screening: Make sure those responsible for selecting interview candidates don’t have access to information about applicants’ race, age, sex or other protected characteristics. That alone will prevent many failure-to-hire claims. HR should take the lead and prepare applicant summaries for hiring managers to screen that contain no tell-tale information about protected characteristics. That may mean even excising names, using a candidate number instead.
  • Who hires and fires: The same individual responsible for the final decision to hire an applicant should also make the decision to fire that individual if necessary. This helps dispel the notion that a protected characteristic like race or age had anything to do with the decision. After all, why would someone hire an applicant who belongs to a protected class then turn around and fire the same person because of her race, sex, age, etc.?
  • Training: Track training to make sure each employee has the opportunity to improve job performance. Note any training offers and the employee’s response.
  • Informal audit: Review your labor pool regularly. Look for patterns that may indicate hiring bias. For example, are all employees in a particular job under age 40? If so, find out why.

For more:  http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/29524/use-consistent-hiring-firing-processes-to-knock-down-age-discrimination-claims

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