LIVERMORE AGE DISCRIMINATION LAWSUIT SET TO BEGIN TODAY

Five former Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory workers that have alleged they were unfairly dismissed from the lab in 2008 because of age discrimination will finally get their day in court today. The five workers are among a group of 130 that have sued contractor Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC, and today’s trial in Alameda County (Calif.) Superior Court represents the first phase of the trial. The 130 workers were included in a layoff of 440 laboratory employees in 2008. Lawyers for the workers, with an average age of 54, have argued during pretrial litigation over the last four years that lab managers unfairly targeted the employees because of their age during the round of layoffs, and the employees are suing for “breach of contract and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing,” according to Gary Gwilliam, a lawyer for the employees with Oakland-based Gwilliam, Ivary, Chiosso, Cavalli & Brewer. One of the plaintiffs is also claiming retaliation in the lawsuit. Lawyers for the lab have repeatedly opposed the claims of the former employees.