Pharmaceutical company wanted to hire more millennials, feds say. Now it owes $2.4M

Pharmaceutical company executives recognized that their nationwide workforce was “skewed toward the older generations,” so leadership made a goal to hire more millennials, authorities said.

But in trying to meet that goal, the Indiana-based corporation discriminated against older job applicants, according to an Oct. 11 news release from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

Now, Lilly USA and parent company Eli Lilly and Company have agreed to pay $2.4 million to settle a federal age discrimination lawsuit filed by the agency in September 2022 and amended in June 2023, records show.

“Lilly is pleased to have resolved this dispute,” a spokesperson said in a statement to McClatchy News. “While we continue to deny the allegations in the complaint, we worked collaboratively with EEOC to resolve this matter and will continue to foster and promote a culture of diversity and respect at Lilly.

“We are an EEO/Affirmative Action Employer and do not discriminate on the basis of age, race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, protected veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status,” the spokesperson continued.

‘Early Career’ hiring program

In April 2017, Eli Lilly’s senior vice president for human resources and diversity presented at a Leadership Town Hall and announced that the Lilly USA workforce had 20% less millennials than the U.S. workforce, according to the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana.

He suggested that was a problem, prosecutors said, and said the company needed to “make sure that we have a (workforce) that is distributed ... by generation.”

“To address the need for more millennials,” the company established an “Early Career” hiring initiative, authorities said. The program created a goal that 40% of new hires be in their “Early Career.”

“Eli Lilly and Lilly USA managers nationwide changed hiring practices and preferences to hire younger candidates for sales representative positions,” according to the complaint. “For example, older candidates for certain sales representative positions needed higher levels of review and approval before being extended an offer.”

In doing so, prosecutors said the company “intentionally under-hired applicants” who are protected by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which protects applicants and workers who are 40 and older.

The goal remained through 2021, officials said.

“The EEOC is committed to ensuring that older job seekers are not subjected to unlawful age discrimination,” EEOC Chair Charlotte A. Burrows said in the release. “Older workers offer valuable work experience and skills that can benefit employers in all industries.”

The settlement

The $2.4 million will be used to pay administrative costs and distribute among applicants aged 40 and over who did not get a job, according to the consent decree.

Authorities said Lilly must also provide relevant training to managers and human resources personnel, survey job applicants to determine if they experienced discrimination and state in contracts with its third-party recruiters that the company doesn’t discriminate based upon age.

“We commend Lilly for working collaboratively with the EEOC to resolve this lawsuit,” EEOC Miami District Director Evangeline Hawthorne said in the release. “Lilly voluntarily ended its Early Career hiring program prior to initiation of the EEOC’s action, and the company’s willingness to implement additional training and other relief will ensure applicants of all ages are fairly considered for employment with Lilly.”

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