Age discrimination suit resolved

BALTIMORE, Md. - The town of Elkton, Md. agreed Wednesday to settle an age discrimination lawsuit filed by the former assistant town administrator/financial director.

Elkton will pay $235,000 and furnish other relief to settle an age discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), on behalf of 70-year-old Andrew Johnson.

According to the EEOC, Johnson's age was openly discussed as the reason for replacing him during meetings of town officials. One town commissioner said that Johnson was "in his 60s" and "no young chick" and suggested replacing him with a "young person out of college." The EEOC charged in its lawsuit that Elkton's town government replaced him with two substantially younger employees, one as the assistant town administrator and the other as the finance director.

"The record shows that this loyal and successful administrator was discarded simply because of his age," said Philadelphia District Director Spencer H. Lewis, Jr. "The EEOC will always fight this kind of outrageous and harmful bias by employers."