There are many reasons why a company needs to lay off workers or restructure its workforce. However, if employees are laid off based solely on their ages, the company may very well be guilty of age discrimination. Any Colorado employee who believes age discrimination played a role in why he or she was terminated may want to understand his or her rights and what to expect if he or she pursues legal action.
Currently, 14 former employees of General Mills are in the midst of taking legal action against the company as they believe age discrimination is why they are no longer employed by the company. There were 850 people were laid off in a given time period. It was reported that over 80 percent of the employees affected were over the age of 40.
There were reported incidents in which different departments were advertising for open positions when some older employees were being let go from those very departments. Some of the older employees also had to train their replacements who were reported to be significantly younger. The company has responded by saying there is no merit to the claims.
A case of age discrimination may be difficult to prove, but it may be the only means for obtaining justice. Some age discrimination claims in Colorado can prove successful and may help wrongfully terminated employees get back pay or a settlement to help them recover from unjust terminations. Anyone in Colorado who feels as if they have been treated unfairly due to age may benefit from learning more about the laws pertaining to discrimination, particularly age discrimination.
Source: startribune.com, “General Mills accused of age discrimination in lawsuit“, Mary Lynn Smith, Feb. 12, 2015
