Maui police to pay $24K in age discrimination suit

A 45-year-old man will receive $24,000 in damages from settlement of an age discrimination lawsuit filed against the Maui Police Department three years ago, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said Tuesday.

A federal consent decree in the case was signed by U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin Chang on Monday.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission filed suit against Maui County in 2013, alleging that the Police Department failed to hire Lars Sandstrom because of his age, a violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

The federal suit said Sandstrom applied to be a police officer with the department and met all qualifications for the position. The EEOC said when Sandstrom applied for the job in 2009, he held a bachelor’s degree and had several years of experience in the military and National Guard. He also earned a high score on the written civil service exam.

Another police department later hired Sandstrom, the commission said.

The EEOC said Sandstrom was not selected for the Maui position even though other, less qualified, younger candidates were hired. Comments were made about Sandstrom’s age during his interview, the EEOC said.

The Maui Police Department is required “to designate an equal employment opportunity monitor to ensure the department’s compliance with the ADEA and anti-discrimination policies and procedures.

The monitor will also focus on ensuring that the department creates and implements recruitment strategies designed to encompass an applicant pool of all potential employees, regardless of age,” the EEOC said.

“The decree also requires a complaint process and impartial investigations, together with a centralized tracking system for discrimination complaints and provisions holding employees accountable for discrimination. Annual training on age-based discrimination and retaliation will be provided for all employees, especially those involved in human resources and at the supervisory level, to educate them on their rights and responsibilities on age discrimination with the goal of preventing and deterring any discriminatory practices in the future,” the EEOC said.

In a written response to the settlement, Rod Antone, communications director for the Maui mayor’s office, said, “The Maui Police Department is firmly committed to complying with all laws and training to ensure compliance with those laws. To that extent, it has willingly agreed to a consent decree in order to bring this matter to conclusion without the need for extensive litigation. As such, this settlement is beneficial to both sides.”

Anna Park, regional attorney for EEOC’s Los Angeles District, which includes Hawaii, said, “Employers need to be mindful of the negative stereotypes and inaccurate assumptions made about the abilities of older workers. Such stereotypes have no place in the employment decision-making process. Today’s settlement sends a strong and powerful message to all employers, public and private sector alike, that equal employment opportunity extends to all, regardless of age.”

Glory Gervacio Saure, director of EEOC’s Honolulu Local Office, said, “Age discrimination remains a problem, making up 19 percent of all EEOC charges filed in Hawaii last year. This settlement reinforces EEOC’s steadfast commitment to ensuring that workers who are unjustly discriminated due to age have recourse.”