These days, large scale layoffs or reductions in force are commonplace. But when the people being laid off all seem to belong to the same group, it tends to draw the attention of the feds.
That’s what happened to 3M Co. recently, when the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed an age-discrimination lawsuit against the company.
According to an EEOC lawsuit, 3M Co. allegedly laid off many highly paid older workers in an effort to cut costs and denied older employees leadership training. The company was also accused of cutting employees in salaried positions – up to the director level.
While 3M denies the allegations, the company has to settle the suit for $3 million, and it will also conduct training on preventing age bias and set up a review process for termination decisions.
It’s worth noting that this is the third age-discrimination lawsuit 3M has settled this year.
