EEOC Legal Victories Cost Employers

EEOC Obtains $27.5M in Consent Decree that Law Firm Partners Are Employees Protected by the ADEA. On October 5, 2007, the EEOC announced that “the international law firm of Sidley Austin LLP will pay $27.5 million to 32 former partners who . . . [allegedly] were forced out of the partnership because of their age, under a consent decree approved by a federal judge. (EEOC v. Sidley Austin LLP, N.D. Illinois No. 05 C 0208.)” The EEOC initiated the litigation two years ago under the ADEA and alleged that the partners “either were expelled from the partnership in connection with an October 1999 reorganization or retired under the firm’s age-based retirement policy.” The litigation has received wide-spread attention since when the EEOC tried to enforce subpoenas during its initial investigation because “[a] major issue in the case was whether partners in the law firm were protected as employees under the ADEA.” The EEOC announced that “[t]he decree provides that ‘Sidley agrees that each person for whom EEOC has sought relief in this matter was an employee with the meaning of the ADEA.’” The full press release may be accessed at http://www.eeoc.gov/press/10-5-07.html.

EEOC Obtains $4.3 consent judgment for Hispanic workers. On October 16, 2007, the EEOC both filed a complaint and entered into a consent decree in federal district court for the Southern District of New York with B & H Foto and Electronics Corp., resolving a national origin discrimination case on behalf of Hispanic workers. The Title VII lawsuit “alleged that B & H paid Hispanics in its warehouses less than non-Hispanic workers and failed to promote them or provide them health benefits based on their national origin (EEOC v. B & H Foto and Electronics Corp., No. 07- CV-9241).” B & H voluntarily agreed “to comply with the requirements of Title VII; equalize the wages of Hispanic employees to their non-Hispanic coworkers; and to work with the EEOC in a claims process to distribute $4.3 million in monetary relief to individuals who were paid less, not promoted, or denied benefits because they are Hispanic.” The full press release may be accessed at http://www.eeoc.gov/press/10-16-07.html.

NOTICE: This summary is designed merely to inform and alert you of recent legal developments. It does not constitute legal advice and does not apply to any particular situation because different facts could lead to different results. Readers should not act upon this information without legal advice. If you have any questions about anything you have read, you should consult with an attorney.