The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sued Amer Sports Winter & Outdoor Company, a recreational gear company based in Utah, for allegedly violating federal law by firing an employee who complained about age discrimination.

The employee had raised concerns multiple times to human resources and management during an organizational restructuring, where younger, less experienced employees were hired for new leadership roles without giving older employees the opportunity to apply.

Despite warnings from his regional manager and the company's HR representative not to escalate his complaint, the employee took his concerns to the company's global vice president. Less than six weeks later, he was terminated.

The EEOC claims this conduct violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which prohibits retaliation against employees for complaining about age discrimination.

The EEOC filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado after attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its administrative conciliation process.   https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/eeoc-sues-amer-sports-retaliation (Oct. 23, 2024).

Commentary

In this matter, the employee "raised concerns" that leadership opportunities were not being offered to older employees.

The employee did not state specifically his employer was violating the law or that he was specifically being targeted for discrimination. He simply made his employer aware that he felt, or it appeared, that older employees were treated differently.

Even so, under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), the employee is viewed as a whistleblower and the anti-retaliation provisions applied to him, especially because he made the complaint more than one time and took it up the chain of command.

The ADEA prohibits employers from retaliating against employees who complain about age discrimination. Retaliation can include any adverse action, such as termination, demotion, or harassment, taken against an employee for asserting their rights under the law.

The final takeaway is that who is protected from retaliation under the ADEA and other equal employment laws is very broad and subject to interpretation. The best practice is to assume that every complaint of unequal treatment, certainly a repeated complaint, is "blowing the whistle" and protected from retaliation.