Cedar Point Settles Federal Charges It Denied Seasonal Workers Aged 40 and Over Employee Housing Based on Age

CLEVELAND – Cedar Fair, L.P., doing business as Cedar Point, and Magnum Management Corporation, which own, operate, and staff the Sandusky, Ohio-based Cedar Point amusement park, will pay $50,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency announced today.

According to the EEOC’s lawsuit, Cedar Fair and Magnum provided housing at significantly below-market rates for out-of-town seasonal employees. During Cedar Point’s 2021 and 2022 seasons, Cedar Fair and Magnum implemented a policy prohibiting employees aged 30 and older, other than entertainers, from living in employee housing. As a result, older out-of-town workers could not resume their seasonal employment at Cedar Point, given the economic barriers created by the housing ban, the EEOC alleged. The housing policy was rescinded at the start of the 2023 season.

Such alleged conduct violates the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (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-JGC) in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio, Western Division, after first attempting to reach a pre-litigation settlement through its conciliation process.

In addition to providing former employees monetary relief, the five-year consent decree settling the suit provides for systemic non-monetary relief intended to prevent further age discrimination, including a commitment that Cedar Fair and Magnum will continue to utilize a housing policy that will not discriminate against employees age 40 and older, implement a revised ADEA policy, and provide training on the ADEA for management personnel responsible for employment decisions and policies for Cedar Point, as well as individuals responsible for managing and implementing the housing benefits and policies for Cedar Point.

“We are pleased that Cedar Fair and Magnum have agreed to an early resolution of this litigation and have rescinded the housing policy denying housing benefits to older seasonal workers,” said Debra Lawrence, regional attorney for the EEOC’s Philadelphia District Office.

EEOC Cleveland Field Office Director Dilip Gokhale said, “Older workers comprise a vital component of the seasonal workforce at theme parks and other entertainment venues. Employers must take care to comply with the ADEA in all aspects of employment.”

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. It includes the Cleveland Field Office. 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.