Former employee files age discrimination suit against WCCC
A former employee at Westmoreland County Community College has filed a federal age discrimination lawsuit against the college for terminating his employment after more than eight years in what the suit calls an effort of “Younging Up the College.”
According to the suit, Peter Hanchar of Scottdale, no age given, along with several other “gray-haired” men, was let go from the school “in an attempt to purge the school of elderly employees.”
Hanchar was reportedly terminated on June 30, 2017, because his position, coordinator of facilities management, had been eliminated.
The suit claimed that a newly created job with the same job requirements, construction coordinator/coordinator of facilities management, became open at WCCC soon after his termination. That position was eventually filled by “a much younger employee,” according to the suit.
The lawsuit stated that the new employee was a certified groundskeeper and less qualified than Hanchar for the new position, but was much younger than Hanchar.
The lawsuit notes that Hanchar never faced a disciplinary action in the eight years and seven months he was employed at the college.
The lawsuit also claims that in the past five years, WCCC has only fired, not renewed contracts, or eliminated the positions of employees over the age of 50.
In addition, the suit alleges that WCCC created a policy and procedure, which eliminated positions for employees over the age of 50, created new positions with the same or substantially similar job requirements as the eliminated positions and hired younger workers to a newly created position “in a veiled attempt to terminate 50 and older employees from the college.”
According to the lawsuit, this policy was known as “Younging Up the College.” Dr. Tuesday Stanley, president of the college, and Dr. Kristy Bishop, vice president of academic affairs, were named as two of the administrative employees credited with creating and implementing the policy.
Specifically, the suit claims that Stanley said at a public meeting, “We are younging up the college, one person at a time.”
The lawsuit includes alleged statements made by Bishop during meetings.
“There are too many grey-haired, old men we have to get rid of,” Bishop was allegedly overhead telling people in January 2016 after the Welcome Back Spring Meeting.
Again, at an afternoon board meeting in January 2016, Bishop stated she “was getting rid of white-haired men,” according to the lawsuit. It went on to say that this statement prompted an employee to request and participate with the college’s human resource department.
Hanchar’s attorney, Kevin Henderson, also alleged there were attempts to “force” Hanchar to resign by subjecting him to a hostile work environment that included moving his work space to an unheated boiler room in December 2012, and ignoring requests to relocate him because of extreme temperatures.
The suit asks for a judgment that includes orders instructing WCCC from engaging in any other acts of discrimination against Hanchar; WCCC award him future pay or reinstate Hanchar to his former position or comparable position; award him back pay, including fringe benefits, from the date discrimination began through date of trial, award him interest, attorney fees, expert witness fees and any other relief the court deems appropriate.