In a recent court case, a job applicant sued for age discrimination after he was mistakenly sent an e-mail from the company CEO that indicated the candidate “must be old.” Read our dramatized account below and see if you can figure out how the judge ruled.

The scene:

“What’s this all about, Eric?” asked CEO Charlie Widmore as attorney Eric Bressler walked into his office.

“Well, Charlie,” said Eric, “there’s no easy way to say this. You’re being sued for age discrimination because of an e-mail you sent.”

‘He must be old’
“What?” said Charlie in disbelief.

“Apparently, a couple weeks ago a candidate sent you his resume. And apparently you sent him this e-mail.” He handed Charlie a printout. It read: Check it out – I don’t know what to think. He must be old – and just looking for something to do.

“That got sent to the applicant?!” asked Charlie, horrified. “That was meant for HR.”

“Well, it seems it went to the applicant instead,” said Eric. “What were you thinking?”

“All I meant was that it was odd that he was applying for the job, given his past experience,” said Charlie.

“We’ve talked about being careful in e-mails,” said Eric, shaking his head. “Look, we may be able to get past this. It was a simple mistake. And how could we discriminate against this guy? His resume never even got to a hiring manager.”

“I sure hope you’re right,” said Charlie.

The applicant persisted in his age discrimination suit. Was the company able to get the case dismissed?

______________________________________

No, the company lost.

The e-mail was the applicant’s trump card – the company’s defenses couldn’t hold up against the CEO’s own colossal mistake.

And the CEO’s inference that the “old” employee was “looking for something to do” stuck in the craw of the court: “This broad, negative characterization of older employees is precisely the type of stereotype the Age Discrimination in Employment Act seeks to remedy.”

Now the company faces either a lengthy trial or an expensive settlement – both of which could have been avoided if the CEO hadn’t brought age into the equation. Sending the e-mail to the wrong person just exposed the problem.

Analysis: E-mail is forever
The obvious lesson for managers: Don’t discriminate, and don’t write discriminating e-mails.

It can’t be stressed enough: E-mail can be dangerous. Given the myriad ways electronic messages are interpreted by different people, managers need to be careful even when they’re writing something innocuous. Here’s the classic test: Does the e-mail contain anything someone wouldn’t want to read in open court?

Cite: Wold v. El Centro Fin. Inc.