Former radio station promoter claims termination was age related

A man who worked as radio station promoter in the Philadelphia region is

suing his former employer over allegations that he was terminated after 13 years on the job because of his age.

Steven Feldman claims in his civil action, which was filed on Feb. 24 at the federal courthouse in Philadelphia, that he was fired in May 2012 for patting a worker on the back and head, even though his job regularly had him coming into close contact with girls in their teens and 20s.

The plaintiff, the lawsuit states, worked as a promoter of five radio stations operated by the defendant, Greater Media Philadelphia, and his job often took him to places that were X-rated or adult in nature.

As an example, one promotion involved individuals stripping to full nudity and engaging in sexual acts with one another, the lawsuit states.

Women in their late teens and early 20s typically accompanied Feldman to the events, the lawsuit states.

“The job involved a great amount of physical contact in the workplace, such as being hugged and kissed every day in greeting or at a goodbye from co-workers, clients and people who came to these venues,” the complaint reads. “Plaintiff received a pat on the back, handshakes, friendly punches, insults, jokes and sexual innuendos. These actions were part of the job and an everyday occurrence.”

Given the nature of his job, Feldman claims that his firing nearly two years ago was pretextual; he contends he was actually fired because of his age, 52, since he was ultimately replaced by someone much younger.

The coworker who Feldman allegedly patted on the back and head, and who was supposedly responsible for getting him fired, had previously worked with the plaintiff at a strip club and had “never been offended by what she saw,” the lawsuit states.

Feldman claims that a supervisor told him he was being fired because the man needed to “protect the interns,” but the complaint alleges the reason was “complete nonsense” given the nature of the job.

“The interns were never in need of ‘protection’ and it was Plaintiff’s job at times to go out to these locations and do sexually explicit promotions which would bring in listeners and satisfy clients,” the lawsuit states.

Feldman accuses the defendant of violating the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.

Feldman seeks to have the defendant permanently enjoined from engaging in discriminatory behavior.

He also seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages, actual damages, litigation costs and attorneys’ fees.

Feldman is being represented by lawyers Timothy M. Kolman, Wayne A. Ely and W. Charles Sipio, of the Penndel, Pa. firm Kolman Ely P.C.

 

The federal case number is 2:14-cv-01100-CDJ.