An employer facing hard times determining who should be laid off may be tempted to focus on older workers. They may have higher salaries and could be seen as a lesser alternative to fresh, new, and younger faces. That kind of decision may also carry a heavy cost if a successful plaintiff is laid off because of his age and sues his or her ex-employer for age discrimination.

Not long ago, a federal jury in Camden awarded a $51.56 million verdict to Robert Braden, an engineer, after deciding his former employer, Lockheed Martin Corp., violated state and federal laws prohibiting discrimination against older workers, as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer. The total award is believed to be one of the biggest for an individual suing an employer for age discrimination.

The trial spanned four days before the jury reached its unanimous decision and awarded Braden:

• $520,000 in economic losses
• $520,000 for “willful” actions contrary to the federal Age Discrimination and Employment Act
• $520,000 for pain and suffering
• $50 million in punitive damages under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination

It reportedly took the jury less than 45 minutes before deciding to include punitive damages after deciding Lockheed Martin acted in reckless disregard of discrimination laws.

Braden, now 66, started working for what was Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in 1984 in Moorestown, according to his lawsuit, and was laid off in 2012 during a round of layoffs at the defense contractor. RCA was bought by General Electric in 1986, the defense division was sold to Martin Marietta in 1993 which merged with Lockheed in 1995.

The plaintiff, who worked as a project specialist – senior staff, was the oldest of six engineers in the company’s Electronic Systems-Mission Systems and Sensors unit and the only one who lost his job in that round of layoffs.

The New Jersey Law Journal reports that according to Braden:

• Lockheed Martin had a corporate culture of age bias including a complicated performance rating system that encouraged lower marks and minimal compensation increases for older workers and high scores and raises for younger ones
• The company allowed age bias against older workers who “had nowhere else to go” because it would be harder for them to find other jobs compared to their younger colleagues
• Lockheed Martin put him in a “community of interest” after he got a subpar performance review in 2011. This label separated him from his peers but had little to nothing to do with the actual work he did
• Company management made remarks about its practice of paying older workers less than younger co-workers
• A supervisor told him high level Lockheed Martin representative directed the supervisor to give Braden low performance ratings because “[t]his guy [Braden] has been here too long. We need to get rid of him.”
• When deciding who to lay off Braden didn’t go through the standard reduction in force decision process
• Lockheed Martin replaced him less than a year after his lay off though lack of available work was given as a reason for his termination

Though it’s not surprising a major corporation could be found to have discriminated against an older employee when they picked him to lay off, the amount of punitive damages is surprising.

If you think you’ve been discriminated against by your employer because of your age and you think they should be held accountable, you should consider filing a legal action but, depending on the facts of your case, don’t do so thinking an award of that magnitude will be coming your way. Your chances of getting a Powerball size award may be only slightly better than winning Powerball.

But a high damages award could be a possibility. Juries are unpredictable and defendants run the risk of eye-popping awards and the bad publicity that comes with them whenever a lawsuit is filed.

If you have a concern about age discrimination in the workplace, contact the employment attorneys for workers at Hanan M. Isaacs, P.C., at 609-683-7400, or contact us online to set up a near-term reduced fee initial consultation at our Central Jersey location in Kingston.  We will listen to your facts, explain the law, and recommend your best pathways to monetary and social justice.  Call today. You will be glad you did.

https://kingstonlawgroup.com