New York (August 23, 2016, 7:21 PM ET) -- A New Jersey-based global medical supply company has been slapped with an age discrimination lawsuit by a longtime former executive who claims the company reassigned his duties to a younger employee and then fired him without severance for failing to meet the goals of an unrealistic improvement plan.
James Hill, 59, a 25-year employee of Becton Dickinson & Co., earned positive performance reviews as he worked his way up from a local customer service manager to a senior executive, then fell out of favor when a new supervisor came aboard last year, according to Hill’s Aug. 16 complaint in Bergen County Superior Court.
Hill claimed he then endured bad reviews, uncredited accomplishments, assignments outside of his expertise and instructions to be more “innovative” until his termination in July without severance, which he said violates the disparate treatment and retaliation provisions of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination.
As a result, Hill has suffered economic, physical and emotional harm,” the complaint said.
Hill’s attorney had no comment and a BD spokesman didn’t immediately return a request for comment Tuesday.
By the time new supervisor Don Davis had joined BD in June 2015, Hill had been appointed one of three senior leaders to run BD’s Worldwide Technical Services organization, according to the complaint. Hill’s area was process improvement.
Within two months, Davis moved Hill into a technology strategy role over Hill’s objections that he had little experience in that area, the complaint said. That September, Davis placed a younger employee into a Worldwide Technical Services manager position and gave the employee Hill’s prior projects, while Hill continued to be assigned technology projects.
Hill received his usual good performance review that November, with a full bonus and raise, the complaint said. However, the following March, Davis gave Hill an unsatisfactory review, told him there was “no place” for him in this organization,” stated the intention to terminate him and offered him an early retirement package consisting of a year’s pay and a pro-rated bonus.
A “shocked” Hill said he’d consider the package, but the offer was taken away a week later and replaced with the option to take a temporary assignment, the complaint said. Hill then raised his concerns about age discrimination with a human resources executive, who told him there was nothing he could do.
Davis told Hill he’d have to accept the temporary assignment, or be put on a performance improvement plan or be terminated. The complaint didn't explain why he would be given a PIP if he was going to be fired. Hill then discussed his concerns with a higher-level human resources executive.
But after that meeting, BD never conducted an investigation into the allegations, despite its policy to do so, the complaint said. Instead, Hill was offered three months' severance pay and a pro-rated bonus to leave the company. Further, the company refused to put the bonus agreement in writing.
While Hill was consulting an attorney about his options, Davis put him on a performance improvement plan targeting areas that were “completely outside” of Hill’s control and “so arbitrary and subjective that Hill had little hope of succeeding,” the complaint said.
Hill then took criticism for using language and acronyms around the workplace that were particular to BD culture and associated with information technology, as well as for not being “innovative” — a euphemism for “younger,” the complaint said.
After Hill complained about the alleged mistreatment to the company through his counsel in April, BD “purported to investigate” the grievance and reported that it found no evidence of discrimination, the complaint said.
Davis continued to deliver unsatisfactory reviews and refused to give Hill credit for achieving project milestones, the complaint said. Hill was also denied the opportunity to attend a professional development convention, although BD’s younger employees and new hires were sent to the event.
Davis fired Hill on July 7 with no severance, despite the company’s policy offering it even if the termination was prompted by performance, the complaint said.
Hill is represented by Colin M. Page of Berkowitz Lichtstein Kuritzky Giasullo & Gross LLC.
Counsel information for Becton Dickinson was unavailable.
The case is James Hill v. Becton Dickinson, case number L-6058-16, in the Superior Court of New Jersey, Bergen County.
--Editing by Bruce Goldman.