Crab Knight, a popular seafood restaurant located in Daytona Beach, Florida, agreed to pay $30,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleged that Crab Knight discriminated against an employee by firing him based on his age in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).

According to the EEOC press release:

… over a period of several weeks, the restaurant's kitchen manager made repeated discriminatory comments about an employee's age and finding someone younger to replace her, before firing her. https://www.eeoc.gov/newsroom/crab-knight-pay-30000-eeoc-age-discrimination-suit (Sept. 30, 2024).

Commentary

The above loss was attributed to one manager's statements and employment action toward one employee. This manager made discriminatory threatening statements in the open and then fulfilled the threats. For that reason, the EEOC is requiring training for all managers and supervisors.

Managers and supervisors should never threaten to fire employees for something they cannot or should not have to change…like their age.

However, times will exist when you may want to warn employees they are going in the wrong direction as to performance and need to change direction or you will terminate the relationship.  You do not want an employee believing your performance evaluation is discrimination.

How can you give final warnings and avoid litigation? In general, final warnings are not legally required for at will employees, but if you choose to do so, here are some things to keep in mind:

If you choose to let an employee know that you may have to terminate them for lawful reasons if they continue their poor performance, then clearly and concisely communicate the warning with another manager witnessing the conversation in a private space. Be prepared with objective reasons for the final warning such as "written complaints from customers" or "consistently being tardy to work". The employee should leave the meeting knowing they were given the courtesy of a final warning and an action plan on how to improve.

The final takeaway is that struggling employees often need more, not less, direction. When you communicate "change or else", you are providing that much-needed direction. How you communicate that direction is important to help prevent litigation.