View this article online: https://www.insurancejournal.com/news/southcentral/2017/06/16/454883.htm
A federal agency has charged a Fort Worth, Texas-based company with discrimination for firing an experienced production foreman fired because of his age.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) said it has filed a lawsuit against Atlas Resource Partners. The suit alleges that the company pushed a 52-year old William Hutto, a production foreman with years of industry experience, out of his job due to a preference for younger workers.
According to the EEOC, Atlas fired Hutto despite his record of strong performance for the company. Prior to his termination, Hutto had never been disciplined.
The EEOC expects to present evidence that Hutto was a strong and capable worker who was highly regarded by his peers.
The EEOC claims that the production superintendent who terminated Hutto also made ageist comments regarding Hutto’s co-workers, including the repeated remarks about being “too old to do the job.”
Such alleged conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, (ADEA), which prohibits employers from discriminating based on age.
The EEOC filed its lawsuit in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division (EEOC v. Atlas Resource Partners, L.P., Civil Action No.3:17-CV-01582-N), after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.
Atlas Resource Partners is a business that develops, acquires and manages oil and gas properties, with an interest in over 14,000 wells across 12 states, including Texas.
Source: EEOC