Labor & Employment Law Daily Wrap Up, EEOC NEWS—Under consent decree, Enterprise Leasing to pay $1.8M in age discrimination suit, (Sep 26, 2025)

By WK Editorial Staff

According to the agency’s suit, the rental car company systemically refused to hire applicants 40 or older for management trainee positions.

This week, the EEOC announced that Enterprise Leasing Company of Florida, LLC, which operates National, Enterprise, and Alamo car rental services in Florida, has agreed to pay $1.8 million and provide significant non-monetary relief to settle a federal age discrimination lawsuit brought by the agency.

Much higher percentage in applicant pool. The agency had alleged that Enterprise failed to hire candidates aged 40 or older for its management trainee position from at least 2019 to the present. While approximately 15 percent of the applications the company received for the position were submitted by applicants aged 40 or above, those workers represented less than three percent of all hires. The agency identified over 125 witnesses who were ready to testify that they were asked their age or graduation year during the interview process; were told by hiring officials that most candidates were fresh out of college; were discouraged from pursuing the position; or were subjected to other age-related comments.

“Over a third of the adult workforce in the United States is age 50 or older,” said EEOC Regional Attorney Kristen Foslid. “Employers cannot overlook qualified applicants simply because of their age.”

Hotline available for applicants. In addition to providing monetary relief to the class of older applicants, the three-year consent decree requires the employer to implement injunctive relief including new policies, yearly training, posting of notice about the lawsuit, and mandatory investigations of all age discrimination complaints. Enterprise also agreed to extensive bi-annual reporting provisions, including an applicant tracking system, and it will maintain an Ethics Hotline, which can be found on the company’s webpage in the Code of Conduct, where all applicants and employees can report complaints of discrimination.

EEOC Miami District Director Evangeline Hawthorne said, “Workers in this protected age group bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the workforce and can contribute to organizational success. This settlement reflects the EEOC’s commitment to ensuring that all individuals have equal access to employment opportunities, regardless of age.”

For more information on age discrimination, please visit https://www.eeoc.gov/age-discrimination.

The lawsuit was filed in Florida federal court; the case is No.: 0:23-61744.

Companies: Enterprise Leasing Company of Florida, LLC

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