Minnesota Prisons Agency to Pay $724K in Age Bias Case

A federal judge is ordering the Minnesota Department of Corrections to pay $724,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission announced the settlement on June 8.

The EEOC sued the Corrections Department over an early retirement plan that entitled employees retiring at age 55 to employer contributions for health and dental insurance until they were 65 but offered no such contributions to those who retired after age 55.

U.S. District Judge Paul Magnuson ruled in April that the plan violated the age discrimination law.

The settlement will go to 35 retirees who were older than 55 when they retired.

A Minnesota Department of Corrections spokeswoman had no immediate comment.