The EEOC sued Builders FirstSource, a building supply company operating in Arlington, Washington, and alleged age discrimination in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, Seattle Division.

The EEOC alleged a manager terminated a 67-year-old worker's assignment based on assumptions about his age and perceived physical impairment. The worker was qualified for the job and had a history of performing physically-demanding work. https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/builders-firstsource-sued-eeoc-discrimination

Commentary

The EEOC alleges violations of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

According to the release about the litigation from the EEOC:

"According to the EEOC's lawsuit, the general manager made assumptions based on her very brief observation of the worker's age and appearance. She speculated he had a physical impairment and would not be physically capable of performing the job, so she immediately terminated his assignment. In reality, the worker was qualified for the position and had a history of working long hours at physically demanding jobs".

In other words, the manager "eyeballed" the older worker; applied a stereotype; and terminated his work assignment without even observing the worker performing the essential functions of the job.

This matter has not settled so Builders FirstSource may argue the employee actually could not perform the essential functions of the job or some other defense. However, the EEOC rarely brings lawsuits it is not confident it will win.

The takeaway for managers and supervisors is that when you perform "eyeball" evaluations of workers, you run the risk of applying stereotypes and finding yourself at the wrong end of a federal lawsuit. The prevention step is to closely evaluate the work performed and make a determination whether the employee is performing the duties as required.