Employer Pays $47K to resolve suit over Retirement Policy
March 26, 2018
Southfield, Michigan-based Professional Endodontics, P.C., has agreed to pay $47,000 to settle a lawsuit alleging that the oral surgery practice violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) when it fired an employee four days after her 65th birthday. She was terminated under a company policy that required employees to retire at age 65.
In addition to the monetary relief to the employee, the consent decree settling the suit prohibits any similar discrimination in the future. The decree also requires Professional Endodontics to provide anti-discrimination training to its employees, including on the practices made unlawful under the ADEA.
"December 2017 marked the 50th anniversary of the ADEA," said Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Regional Attorney Kenneth Bird said in a statement. "Employers need to understand that mandatory retirement policies run afoul of the ADEA and will be met with challenge."
