Houston Company to Pay $50.9K to Settle Federal Age Discrimination Suit

A Houston-based engineering and construction company will pay a former employee $50,960 to resolve an age discrimination lawsuit, federal officials say.

The lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), alleges Burrow Global Services LLC fired an employee because of his age in violation of federal law

Burrow Global provides engineering, design, and related technical services for clients in the petrochemical and refining industries.

According to the EEOC’s suit, filed in 2020, a senior electrical designer over age 60 was subjected to age discrimination when a much younger individual became his supervisor. Almost immediately, the new supervisor began making comments about retirement and repeatedly asking the employee when he planned to retire, the EEOC said.

The lawsuit further charged that, shortly thereafter, the supervisor made the decision to terminate the employee. Burrow Global subsequently offered the employee’s position to a significantly younger person, the EEOC said.

Such alleged conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which prohibits discrimination on the basis of age. The EEOC filed its suit (Civil Action No. 4:20-cv-00423) in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas after first attempting to resolve the case through its administrative conciliation process.

Under a three-year consent decree entered March 26, 2021, Burrow Global will pay the employee $50,960 in back pay and liquidated damages and will also conduct training regarding the ADEA, update its ADEA policies, post a notice prohibiting discrimination, and provide regular reports to the EEOC.

Source: EEOC

Topics Lawsuits