HP Class Action Alleges Age Discrimination

Hewlett-Packard Company (HP) has been hit with a class action lawsuit from a former employee who alleges that he was let go from the company because he was too old.

Plaintiff Bryant Fonseca says he has been working at HP for about 36 years in the “CHIL” group as a “Procurement Ops Associate V.” His group conducted research on HP’s all-in-one printers.

The plaintiff claims that as the years went on, he became an expert at SAP and later became a “SAP Super User.”

The HP class action lawsuit states that in 2012, HP created a “Workforce Reduction Plan” which was a “scheme to terminate its older, higher paid employees and replace them with younger, lower paid employees.”

The plaintiff claims that the program was set up to lay off employees on a “neutral” basis, but in actuality it’s a program that goes after employees who are 40-years-old or older, which is a protected Class.

The HP class action lawsuit alleges that in November 2015, the company was consistently eliminating jobs of older employees and replacing them with younger workers.

“Although purportedly neutral on their face, HP’s terminations under its Workforce Reduction Plan are actually targeted to eliminate older, age-protected workers in grossly disproportionate numbers. As of October 2015, a total of 1,765 out of 2,076 California-based employees who were terminated under HP’s Workforce Reduction Plan (or over 85%) are 40 years of age, or older,” the plaintiff claims in his HP class action lawsuit.

The plaintiff also alleges that the HP “Workforce Reduction Plan” was put in place on a rolling basis, in that it does not terminate its employees all at once, but serves as a way to fire members of a protected Class whenever it wants to.  

The HP class action lawsuit states that employees who are terminated under the Workforce Reduction Plan can apply for other jobs at the company through their 60-day “Preferential Rehire Period.”

Fonseca alleges that while the Preferential Rehire Period is supposedly neutral, it has a negative effect on age protected employees.  

“In fact, during the Preferential Rehire Period, HP’s older employees are almost never rehired. If [] older employees are even offered a job, the job is rarely, if at all, comparable to the one that employee held before he or she was terminated,” the HP class action lawsuit states.

Fonseca alleges that in May 2017 he was notified that he was being terminated under the Workforce Reduction Plan. In addition, he was told that he could apply for other jobs within HP through the Preferential Rehire Period.

The plaintiff says he applied for two different positions at HP and he was highly qualified for both of them. That said, he did not get either of the positions.

“HP subsequently hired a new employee who was younger and less expensive than Mr. Fonseca to perform the tasks that he previously did. Despite submitting multiple job applications every day since his termination, Mr. Fonseca has yet to find gainful employment,” the HP class action lawsuit states.

Last, the plaintiff claims that because of his “unlawful termination,” he has subsequently resorted to welfare and food stamps in order to support his family and three foster children.

Have you been the subject of age discrimination by HP or another company? Let us know in the comment section below.

The plaintiff is represented by Jeffrey L. Hogue, Tyler J. Belong, and Stephanie A. Sandler of Hogue & Belong.

The HP Age Discrimination Class Action is Fonseca v. Hewlett-Packard Company, et al. Case No. 37-2017-00045630-CU-WT-CTL, in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of San Diego.

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