BURLINGTON, Vt.—A Topsham man has won an age discrimination lawsuit in which he claimed he was passed up for a job as the town road foreman because he was too old.
An Orange County Superior Court jury has awarded James "Bucky" Spooner $241,119.
Spooner was 60 years old and had worked for 15 years in road maintenance when he applied to become Topsham's road foreman in 2001.
According to court papers, the Selectboard hired a 32-year-old man who had less experience after two board members decided Spooner was "too old" and could retire in a few years.
After three days of testimony, the jury reached a verdict on Jan. 25.
The award represents the salary Spooner would have made since 2001 if he had been hired for the job.
Edwin Hobson, Spooner's Burlington lawyer, said he thinks Spooner would rather have been road foreman than have won the award.
The town is considering whether to appeal the verdict.
Age discrimination cases rarely make it to trial in Vermont. Sandra Everitt, head of the civil rights division of the Attorney General's Office, said in this case she believes there was evidence that age was a factor in the hiring decision.
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Information from: The Burlington Free Press, http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com
