Merrimac woman files federal age discrimination lawsuit

By Ed Treleven, Capital Newspapers

A Merrimac woman filed a federal age discrimination lawsuit Monday against a Madison evangelical campus mission organization, alleging that she overheard job interviewers talking about how she was too old to work there.

In her lawsuit against the InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, Elizabeth Miller claims that in April 2007 she overheard the conversation after she hung up the telephone following an interview for a grant writing job with two Intervarsity employees. She picked up the phone to make another call and discovered the interviewers had not yet been disconnected.

InterVarsity spokesman Gordon Govier said the organization is "glad to have an opportunity to present our legal argument. We do believe we'll be successful."

According to the lawsuit, Miller heard one interviewer say to the other that Miller "seemed to be 59 or 60 years of age" and that many Intervarsity employees were about the same age and would retire in five years or so, leaving a "huge hole" in the work force. He then asked the other interviewer whether they should contribute to that "hole" by hiring Miller, the lawsuit states.

As Miller continued to listen, the lawsuit alleges, the two agreed to call another woman about the job. The 29-year-old woman, who had no grant writing experience, was hired. Miller was 59 at the time and had more than 10 years of grant writing experience.

Miller's attorney, Aaron Halstead, said Monday that Miller has not found a job since.

"That has made her situation a lot more difficult," Halstead said. "She has suffered quite a huge loss."

Miller filed a complaint with the Madison Equal Opportunities Division on May 17, 2007. An investigator issued a finding of probable cause on Dec. 28, 2007. The case has been awaiting further action since then, Halstead said.