a. Can a plaintiff bring a disparate impact claim under the ADEA?
b. Is the scope of a disparate impact claim under the ADEA as broad as it is under Title VII?
c. Did the City of Jackson base its decision on reasonable factors other than age?
The city of Jackson, Mississippi (the City) granted pay raises to everyone on its police force. One of the City's goals in granting these increases was to attract new recruits; therefore, officers with less than five years of service received proportionately greater raises than their more senior colleagues. Senior officers tended to be older. Some of these older officers filed suit under the ADEA claiming a disparate impact, that the plan adversely affected them because of their age. The District Court granted summary judgment to the City. The Court of Appeals affirmed.