One male and six female employees filed a lawsuit last Friday, June 19, against the McDonald's Restaurants of California corporation. The complaint describes the plaintiffs as "hard-working restaurant workers whose careers ended abruptly as part of their employer's deliberate and unlawful scheme to replace them with a substantially younger workforce."
The plaintiffs allege that a new manager hired in 2012, Maria Contreras, went to work cutting back the hours of older employees and made it difficult for them to take their allotted breaks while on the job. Later, in December 2013, when the Parthenia Street McDonald's underwent renovations, Contreras helped younger employees transfer to other McDonald's restaurants for the duration of the project. Employees that she did not help transfer, namely the plaintiffs, were told that they could reapply to the Parthenia branch following its re-opening.
Following the renovation's completion, none of the plaintiffs were offered their old jobs back.
When one of the plaintiffs, 52-year-old Rosario Flores, directly asked Contreras to be one of the employees transferred during the renovations, Contreras responded by saying that she "did not want old people to staff the Parthenia restaurant," and that she only wanted "puro gente joven," Spanish for "only young people." Other plaintiffs had perfect disciplinary records despite nearly 20 years of service with the company working in multiple roles.
Age discrimination in the workplace is a serious issue. If you believe you've been treated unfairly because of your age, submit your claim to the workplace discrimination attorneys here at The Meyers Law Firm. Our staff will review your case and help you determine your best course of action.