Scrutinizing a pension plan for age discrimination

Description

Abstract: Can older employees be required to pay higher plan contribution rates than younger participants? This article examines a case in which a company determined that employees’ contribution rates would be determined by the person’s age when he or she joined the plan, since older employees’ contributions would earn interest for fewer years than those of younger participants. After two employees sued, an appellate court held that, if the only possible basis for retirement was reaching a certain age, the plan may have been justified. But a plan amendment that allowed certain employees to retire based solely on years of service caused the employer to lose the case. EEOC v. Baltimore County, No. 13-1106, March 31, 2014 (4th Cir.)