Scenario
Case No. 1: ‘Old’ worker comes into new money.
A supervisor casually called a 58-year-old female worker various ageist names, including “outdated,” “part of the old culture” and a “dumb female.” She quit, citing job stress, and was replaced by a 20-year old man. She sued for age harassment and won. The jury concluded that the company acted with malice, so it awarded $28 million in punitive damages.
Case No. 2: ‘A culture of joking.’
Augustine, a prison guard, sued for disability harassment, saying a supervisor often mocked his stutter in front of other guards. On one occasion, the supervisor mimicked Augustine’s stutter on the prison’s broadcast system right after Augustine made an announcement. A fellow supervisor said there was a “culture of joking” about his stutter in the workplace. Augustine sued for disability harassment. A jury awarded him $500,000, saying the harassment was
severe and pervasive.
