Allen Theatres sued for alleged age discrimination

Las Cruces-based Allen Theatres, which owns and operates 17 cinemas in New Mexico, Arizona and Colorado, is facing a lawsuit from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of a former theatre manager at its North Plains 7 movie theatre in Clovis.

In a federal complaint, the agency alleges that Abby Parrish, a 30-year employee, was “mandatorily retired” because of his age in 2021; and that the company has a policy of terminating health insurance coverage for employees at age 65.

The EEOC said the company’s actions violate federal laws protecting workers from discrimination on the basis of age. Further, it alleges that efforts to negotiate a settlement with Allen Theatres president Russell Allen prior to litigation were unsuccessful.

During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, all of Allen Theatres’ locations in New Mexico were shut down under emergency public health orders. According to the EEOC complaint, in September of that year most employees were laid off, but that Parrish was treated differently, informed that he would be retired because he was 72 years old. The complaint states that when theatres reopened in 2021, the company proceeded to recall the theatre managers who had been laid off, with the exception of Parrish.

The complaint states that Russell Allen stated in interviews with the EEOC that Parrish, who had worked at the Clovis location since 1991, was qualified for the job and the decision to end his employment “was based on Allen’s belief that a man Parrish’s age would not like working at night” and “was not based on anything Parrish had said about his desired work hours.” It also states that Allen believed the decision was lawful. Parrish was replaced by a 30-year-old with considerably less experience, according to the complaint.

The agency further alleges a company policy of terminating employees’ insurance when they reach age 65, as the complaint states happened to Parrish in 2012. Parrish told investigators he enrolled in Medicare, which offered less coverage, after Allen Theatre disenrolled him from its insurance plan. He stated that his request for a pay increase to help cover out-of-pocket medical costs and insurance premiums was denied. Since health coverage is part of employees’ compensation, the EEOC says denying it to employees on the basis of age is unlawful discrimination under which older employees are paid less than younger coworkers.

“A company cannot implement a policy completely stopping medical benefits for its employees when they turn 65,” EEOC attorney Mary Jo O’Neill argued in a written statement. “This policy results in employees 65 and over being paid less in employee benefits than younger employees. Further, a company cannot force a well-qualified employee who was satisfactorily performing his job as a theater manager to involuntarily retire simply because of a paternalistic view that people should not be working at age 72.”

Russell Allen did not respond to queries for this story.

The complaint also alleges the company failed to maintain required documentation related to Parrish’s termination and his EEOC complaint.

The lawsuit seeks back pay, lost benefits and front pay with interest and liquidated damages for Parrish, and an injunction ordering Allen Theatres to halt age-based discrimination in hiring, firing and compensating employees.