A former employee of the St. Louis Rams lost a round in her legal battle against the organization she had accused of both sexual harassment and age discrimination in federal court. The judge presiding over the matter tossed out the allegations of sexual harassment prior to going to trial, and a jury recently ruled in favor of the football organization.
The basis of the litigation was then 56-year-old woman’s failure to be re-hired when her most recent employment contract expired in 2011. That was allegedly due to poor work performance, her refusal to work with another employee and her alleged propensity for squabbling with other employees.
The woman countered that she was dismissed because of her age, along with other older employees, all of whom were then replaced with young and inexperienced interns at the beginning of their careers.
During the trial, it was revealed that the Rams organization had allowed the woman to design her dream job and even arranged a $20,000 interest-free loan for her.
It is unknown whether the former employee plans to appeal.
While this was an unfortunate outcome for the former Rams employee, many who seek legal action due to age or other forms of employment discrimination are able to recover damages from litigation and walk away with satisfactory settlements after taking legal action.
If you feel that your employment was terminated due to your employer’s discriminatory practices, you may be eligible for compensation or damages. Documentation of all incidents of alleged discriminatory actions or words is essential to successful results, so make sure you detail each incident, including witnesses present at the time. A Missouri attorney who practices employment law can give you a clearer picture of your situation.
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, “Jury rejects age discrimination claim against St. Louis Rams” Robert Patrick, Feb. 28, 2014
