EEOC Sues Ohio Amusement Park for Age Discrimination

CLEVELAND – Cedar Fair, L.P., doing business as Cedar Point, and Magnum Management Corporation, which own, operate and staff Cedar Point amusement park in Sandusky, Ohio, violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) by banning seasonal workers aged 40 and older from employer-provided housing, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) charged in a lawsuit filed today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Cedar Fair and Magnum provide housing at signifi­cantly below-market rates for out-of-town seasonal employees. In 2021, they implemented a policy prohibiting most employees ages 30 and older from living in employee housing. Given the economic barriers created by the housing ban, older out-of-town workers could not resume their seasonal employment at Cedar Point, the EEOC alleged.

Such alleged conduct violates the ADEA, which prohibits the denial of equal terms, conditions, and/or privileges of employment, based on an individual’s age (40 years and older). The EEOC filed suit (EEOC v. Cedar Fair L.P., et al., Civil Action No. 3:23-cv-01843) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Western Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement thought its conciliation process.  

“This case underscores the need for the EEOC to combat age discrimination in all aspects of employment,” said Philadelphia District Office Regional Attorney Debra Lawrence.

EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office Director Jamie Williamson said, “The EEOC is committed to enforcing the ADEA and ensuring that older employees are able to access the same employment benefits and opportunities as all other workers.”

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

The EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office is one of four offices in the Philadelphia District, which has jurisdiction over Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, West Virginia, and parts of New Jersey and Ohio. Attorneys in the Philadelphia District Office also prosecute discrim­ination cases from Washington, D.C., and parts of Virginia.

The EEOC advances opportunity in the workplace by enforcing federal laws prohibiting employment discrimination. More information is available at www.eeoc.gov. Stay connected with the latest EEOC news by subscribing to our email updates.