EEOC Sues over Saginaw Pension Calculation

According to the EEOC allegations, t he city discriminated against Richard Streit, a retired police officer, when it calculated and paid his disability retirement benefits, BNA reported. The EEOC filed the action under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), saying the city violated the law by maintaining a disability retirement benefit plan that uses age as a factor. Streit received a smaller pension because of that calculation, the complaint charged.

EEOC’s suit asked the court to stop the city from using age as a factor in calculating disability retirement benefits, to provide ADEA training to all employees, and to pay Streit lost pension benefits and damages equal to the lost benefits. It also asked the court to determine Streit’s future pension payment.

“We are very concerned about age discrimination in Michigan,” Adele Rapport, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Detroit District Office said in a statement. “All employers, including local government, must make certain that disability pension plans, as well as benefits of other types, do not provide greater benefits to younger workers than to older workers. It is clearly unlawful to use age as a basis for the calculation and payment of pension benefits and the EEOC will aggressively pursue litigation when we find that has occurred.”