09-15-2022
Nine former employees of Fox Sports have filed a lawsuit against the company for age discrimination in violation of California's anti-discrimination law. The plaintiffs are somewhere between 49 to 80 years of age and had worked in the Graphics department for a significant period. The plaintiffs reported feeling pushed out by Fox prior to the pandemic as they grew older. For example, they allege Fox placed a group of them into a tiny room away from the art department, and they received assignments for more "grunt" work. These employees also observed younger employees receiving promotions, notwithstanding one of the older employees pushing to receive the same type of promotion.
In March 2020, Fox sent an email that directed "all non-essential employees home for the foreseeable future." Within a few days, Fox sent an email letting everyone know Fox would pay them through April 12, 2020, and stated the company was trying to find a "solution that hopefully will keep everyone whole as we sit out this crisis." Fox extended the benefits another week, but Fox did not communicate that the plaintiffs would be let go. In June 2020, the plaintiffs heard that Fox brought back some younger employees to work. Their supervisor sent an email in September to the plaintiffs. He said the company's goal was to bring back as many people as possible. Various members of the group continued to reach out for updates on their positions and received assurances the company still working on it.
The plaintiffs allege that they later learned their supervisor had a meeting with the Graphics department members in July 2020. In that meeting, he allegedly told the group, “This is it; no one else will be returning." He further indicated that they "got rid of all the dead weight." In June 2021, the supervisor told one of the plaintiffs the company had no plans to bring back anyone in the foreseeable future. Fox never notified the plaintiffs that it had laid them off; they learned when they sought benefits. The plaintiffs allege most of the employees brought back were "substantially younger." Fox has not yet publicly commented on the lawsuit.