Seasons 52, a restaurant chain with Dunwoody and Buckhead locations, will pay $2.85 million and make changes to settle a nationwide age discrimination lawsuit, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced Thursday.
The EEOC's lawsuit sought relief for applicants age 40 and older who had been denied positions at 35 Seasons 52 restaurants around the country. None of the 35 were the Atlanta-area locations, but the settlement affects all locations.
The federal agency said more than 135 applicants provided sworn testimony that Seasons 52 managers asked them their age or made comments, such as: "Seasons 52 girls are younger and fresh," "Most of the workers are younger," "Seasons 52 hires young people," or "We are really looking for someone younger."
The chain, part of the Darden family of restaurants, isn’t admitting guilt.
The EEOC, which filed suit in 2015, said the consent decree resolving the case sets up a claims process to identify and compensate those who were denied a position on the basis of age.
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The decree requires changes to Seasons 52's recruitment and hiring processes. It also requires the company to pay for a decree compliance monitor, who is charged with ensuring that the company complies with the settlement.
"Although ageism is among the most common forms of employment discrimination, applicants who are turned down rarely know the reason why,” one of EEOC’s attorneys, Kristen Foslid, said in a news release. “When an employer has a trend of rejecting older applicants, the EEOC will respond aggressively to combat age stereotypes."
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