The Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights & Urban Affairs announces the filing of an age and disability discrimination, retaliation and wage and hour lawsuit against The Finish Line, Inc., a major athletic shoe retail chain.

The case has been filed in the U.S. District Court of Maryland on behalf of Justyn Belton, a former Sales Associate, by the Washington Lawyers’ Committee’s Disability Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity Projects as well as the law firm of Kaye Scholer LLP.

The complaint alleges that Finish Line failed to promote and ultimately terminated Mr. Belton, a 36-year-old man with learning disabilities and dyslexia, because of his age, disability and protected EEO activity. The plaintiff’s supervisors denied him raises and promotions, at times explicitly citing his age and disability as impediments to his advancement within the company.  Mr. Belton claims that, while non-disabled, younger sales associates with less seniority and lower sales numbers were promoted, he was not. Mr. Belton was terminated just one month after submitting a charge of discrimination to the Maryland Commission on Civil Rights.

The complaint further alleges that Finish Line failed to compensate Mr. Belton for regular overtime hours. Mr. Belton worked up to thirty hours beyond his shifts each week. He was never, however, compensated for these hours, despite the fact that numerous managerial staff were aware that he continued to work at the store long after his shift had ended.

According to Elaine Gardner, Director of the Disability Rights Project, “The plaintiff in this case was a skilled and committed worker. We hope that this lawsuit will help create workplaces where such employees are valued and rewarded, regardless of their age or disability.”