Discrimination is never acceptable, especially in the workplace. In recent months we’ve seen a lot of stories about racial and gender discrimination in the news, and while it’s become almost common to learn of another lawsuit being filed against, say, Fox News or CNN, news of a discrimination lawsuit being filed against an inclusive organization may be a bit more difficult to believe. Over the years Facebook has made a name for itself as being inclusive and welcoming to all, at least that’s what many thought. However, two new age discrimination lawsuits have some wondering just how inclusive the social media giant is when it comes to age.
Discrimination is never acceptable, especially in the workplace. In recent months we’ve seen a lot of stories about racial and gender discrimination in the news, and while it’s become almost common to learn of another lawsuit being filed against, say, Fox News or CNN, news of a discrimination lawsuit being filed against an inclusive organization may be a bit more difficult to believe. Over the years Facebook has made a name for itself as being inclusive and welcoming to all, at least that’s what many thought. However, two new age discrimination lawsuits have some wondering just how inclusive the social media giant is when it comes to age.
The most recent age discrimination lawsuit against the company was filed by 61-year-old Stephen Cohen of Manhattan. According to him, he was “was approached by Facebook’s vice president of global marketing and director of sales and marketing staff about a job in communications.” However, when he sent in his resume for the job, “which listed his graduation date as 1978,” he was informed that the position was no longer available.
Just days before Cohen filed his lawsuit, “former Facebook employee Gary Glouner, 52, filed a suit in Los Angeles Superior Court alleging that he was fired in 2015 over his age and disability.” According to his lawsuit, Facebook often “discriminated against older employees, including himself, for not moving fast enough.” On occasion, he even witnessed “several other older employees get fired after being told that they were a poor cultural fit or that they didn’t get it or that they didn’t move fast enough.”
During his time with the company, he got the impression that younger “employees who grew up with new technologies” were preferred and that older workers, like himself, “were considered culturally awkward within Facebook’s work environment.”
Both lawsuits share similarities other than accusing the company of age discrimination. According to various reports, “both lawsuits reference Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s speech to a tech gathering in 2007 as an example of Facebook’s ageist culture.” When he gave the speech, he was a relatively new 22-year-old CEO, and, according to Glouner, he made his “generational preferences clear.”
What exactly did Zuckerberg say during his speech, though? For starters, he said, “Young people are just smarter.” He added, “I want to stress the importance of being young and technical….Why are most chess masters under 30?…I don’t know…Young people just have simpler lives.”
It will be interesting to see how Facebook handles these accusations, and what kind of impact it will have on the company as a whole.
Sources:
Facebook is facing 2 age-discrimination lawsuits
Ex-manager sues Facebook over alleged age discrimination
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