Age Discrimination Lawsuit Alleging Discriminatory Failure To Hire Filed By EEOC
In a press release issued on April 1, 2020, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) announced that it has filed an age discrimination lawsuit against San Miguel Mountain Ventures, LLC, d/b/a Telluride Express (Telluride Express). On March 30, 2020, the EEOC filed the case, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission v. San Miguel Mountain Ventures, LLC, d/b/a Telluride Express, Case No. 1:20-cv-00881, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado after initially attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its statutorily mandated conciliation process.
The EEOC has brought the age discrimination pursuant to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) on behalf of an individual, Chester Webber (Webber), who applied for employment with Telluride Express. Under the ADEA, individuals are protected from discrimination with respect to the compensation, terms, conditions, or privileges of employment on the basis of age. The protection against age discrimination extends to job applicants and employees. The EEOC claims that Telluride Express violated the ADEA by refusing to hire Webber because of his age. In this article, our Marion County, Florida age discrimination attorneys explain the EEOC’s allegations against Telluride Express.
EEOC Alleges Driver Not Hired Because Of Age
In October 2015, Webber applied for employment with Telluride Express by submitting an application for a driver position. Webber was 79 years old and possessed more than five decades of commercial driving experience when he applied for the position. Pointing to his extensive commercial driving experience, along with his Department of Transportation medical certificate and clean driving record during the preceding three-year period, the EEOC claims that Webber was qualified to hold the driver position at Telluride Express.
The day after he applied, Webber received a telephone call from the company’s Transportation Supervisor. The Transportation Supervisor told Webber that Telluride Express would not hire him because the company’s commercial auto insurance policy would not cover him as a driver because he was too old. Less than a week after denying employment to Webber, Telluride Express hired 11 new drivers. In 2015, Telluride Express hired 32 drivers. All 32 drivers who were hired, according to the EEOC, were between the ages of 25 and 70. In 2015, Telluride Express did not hire any drivers age 71 or older. The EEOC claims that Telluride Express’s decision to deny employment to Webber was based on his age, not his qualifications for the job.
Vindicating Rights Of Older Workers
The EEOC is the administrative agency of the United States responsible for interpreting and enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. In enforcing the federal civil rights laws, the EEOC is also authorized by federal law to bring lawsuits on behalf of job applicants and employees who have been discriminated against on the basis of age. In the press release issued by the EEOC on April 1, 2020 regarding the case, a regional attorney for the EEOC’s Phoenix District Office, Mary Jo O’Neill, explained that the “ADEA clearly prohibits refusing to hire a qualified candidate because of his age.” “Job seekers should be evaluated based on their qualifications,” Ms. O’Neill added, “not their age.” In commenting on the case, the Director of the EEOC’s Denver Field Office, Amy Burkholder, stated that the ADEA “prohibits employers from depriving candidates of an equal opportunity to contribute because of their age, and the EEOC will keep diligently enforcing it.”
Consult With Ocala Age Discrimination Lawyers
Based in Ocala, Florida and representing employees throughout Central Florida, our Marion County, Florida age discrimination attorneys have dedicated their practice to fighting against employees who discriminate against older workers because of their age. If you have been denied employment on the basis of age or have questions about your rights as a victim of age discrimination, please contact our office for a free consultation with our Ocala, Florida age discrimination lawyers. Our employment and labor law attorneys take age discrimination cases on a contingency fee basis. This means that there are no attorney’s fees incurred unless there is a recovery and our attorney’s fees come solely from the monetary award that you recover.