Class Action: UnitedHealth Group Discriminates Against Older Female Sales Employees

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A former UnitedHealth Group Incorporated senior account executive has sued the company and two supervisors over an allegedly “unlawful systemic pattern and practice of discrimination and retaliation against older female employees.” Specifically, the suit claims the defendants routinely discriminate against female employees over the age of 40 by failing to properly evaluate their performances on the same basis as younger workers, as well as retain, promote and elevate older women into leadership roles.

According to the case, the 52-year-old plaintiff sold insurance products to businesses from 2007 until her wrongful termination in June 2018.Throughout her tenure, the plaintiff met her sales goals in all but one year, the complaint states. Beginning in 2017, the defendants, the suit says, directed the woman to meet “unrealistic” sales benchmarks going into 2018. After falling short on these goals, the plaintiff was allegedly singled out and issued a performance warning. The suit points out that younger male employees who also failed to meet the same goals supposedly received no such warnings.

The plaintiff, through her attorney, went on to approach HR about her treatment, the suit says, and expressed that she suspected her performance warning was issued on the basis of age discrimination. Despite the woman’s concerns, no action was taken to investigate or rectify the situation, the case says. Instead, the plaintiff, according to the suit, began being “denied access to important meetings essential to her successful job performance,” including sales events and conference calls. The case alleges the woman was ultimately fired in retaliation for addressing the defendants’ allegedly discriminatory practices.