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A woman whose male boss told her to “calm down, don’t let the hormones get out of control” has won an age discrimination case against her employer, Selazar, an artificial intelligence tech start-up.
In the case of McCabe v Selazar (judgement published 12th August 2022) Louise McCabe, finance director, was 55 when her then boss, 29-year-old Jack Williams, made the comment during a meeting.
The tribunal judge found that Mr Williams would not have made the comment to a younger colleague. The hearing also established that he perceived older people as “not familiar” with the IT sector. When Mrs McCabe raised concerns about the comments and how staff were treated at the firm, Mr Williams removed her from her role as company director and she was subsequently dismissed.
Concluding that Mrs McCabe had been the victim of age discrimination by Mr Williams, Judge Jillian Brown said: “On all the evidence, the Tribunal decided that it could conclude that at least part of the reason for (her) dismissal was her age.
“(Selazar) had asked (a recruitment consultant) to look for a younger person for the finance department; Mr Williams viewed (Mrs McCabe) as an older woman; Mr Williams considered that older people were not familiar with IT businesses.”
A further hearing, at a later date, will determine the level of Mrs McCabe’s compensation.
Those who subscribe to the Boardside newsletter (if you do not receive it, you can sign up here) will remember that I have tackled the topic of age in the workplace before. My article The Benefits of Embracing a Mature Workforce even uses the tech environment as an example of where generations can potentially clash. In settings such as this, it is particularly important to foster a culture of inclusivity that values the skills, age and experience of everyone in the workforce. Firms that truly value these things are unlikely ever to use terms such as ‘tech savvy’ or ‘recent graduate’ in their recruitment campaigns.
Turning to the tribunal case in question, age discrimination is sadly a live and enduring issue in many workplaces. Even leaders who know how to keep their prejudices under wraps on a day-to-day basis can let them slip during a heated moment, as appears to have happened in this instance.
The solution is to create a workplace where respect for age, gender and ability is genuinely held. Where this is successfully achieved, a company should never find itself in a tribunal situation. In such organisations, the job of HR is straightforward because misunderstandings rarely occur. This may sound like a utopia but I assure you that it is readily achievable and I am fortunate to have worked closely with companies that have achieved it. In fact, I would go so far as to say that these are my preferred clients, which may sound strange coming from an employment lawyer. Whilst there are plenty of employment lawyers who relish the challenge of a “good” tribunal, I would much rather work with the board of a company to help them create a culture that values its people and makes it easier to retain them.