Dahlstrom said his sales territory expanded from 94 retailers to 162 this year. "That was not the job that I was hired to do," he said.

Sue, sue, sue, that's all everyone wants to do.  It is clear this guy thinks he is a union worker instead of a sales worker; I've run into a lot of "union" workers in my 10+ year stint in the US Navy...guys telling me, "That is not my job..."  You never here a startup businessman/entrepreneur say that a certain thing is not their job.  If he can't fulfil the work requirements, then he needs to move on or retire.  So he never thought that his territory would ever expand during the time he worked with the lottery?!  It happens all the time in the private sector, so like I said, he needs to move on or retire as I see no grounds for a lawsuit.

You must not be 61. Age discrimination is very real.  It is normally disguished as job change requirements.

Thank you!

No I am not 61 or even close to it.  But I do have a thorough understanding of work/job requirements and productivity.  Now the airlines placed a mandatory retirement age in effect back in the days when American's life expectancy as well as vibrancy in old age was not as long or as vital as it is now what with the advancements in medicine as well as improved healthy lifestyles.  I believe that if someone has the capabilities to perform a given task, they should be allowed to continue to do so regardless of age.  But when a person is unable or unwilling to do so, then that is a different story.  In that case, that person needs to either be reassigned to any assignment that person has the skills to perform or terminated.  Business is business.  We live in a capitalistic society, not a socialist one.  That is what makes America so great.  To start making allowances for deficient work performance due to age is wrong...it is wrong for an old age worker to bring their age into the equation as to the reason they cannot perform a given task that has been required all along or due to process changes perhaps might be a new requirement for that given job. 

Personally, my grandfather used to be a carpenter and actually worked on construction projects well into his 60s.  When he deemed that he could no longer safely climb ladders, he stopped working in that capacity and retired to tend to his vegetable and flower gardens.  If a person can't do the job, then they have to be man or woman enough to own up to that fact and move on.  But no, we now live in an American society where one sees just as many lawyer ads as you do other product/service ads.  Many Americans' today do not want to accept personal responsibility for their actions.  That very may well mark the downfall for our country.  I know I rambled a bit but this is something that really peeves me.

Maybe when you are in your 60s you will look back and reflect on this post, OldSchool.  This has nothing to do with accepting personal responsibility. 

"he stopped working in that capacity and retired to tend to his vegetable and flower gardens."

Good for him!  But not everyone can retire at 60 or 65.  Also, you might not realize it, but the above statement is very insulting.  Sounds like .. "Let's take all the old people and put them in flower gardens to keep them happy."  There are people saving lives at 75 and scientists still discovering cures for life threatening diseases.  Reagan ran our country in his 80s.  If I were from another planet and read your comment, I would get the general idea that people who live beyond a certain age in this country are no longer useful. Older workers are a valuable asset to our society and bring with them a wealth of experience and wisdom you can't get from your "better, faster, stronger" world.  I'd hate to hear what you think about working with the handicapped.

Increasing someones sales territory to an unmanageble size or adding more responsibilties to a persons work load is a typical management tactic used to cause job frustration and  dissatisfaction.  It also allows management to set artificial and unattainable goals to screw the employee on the next job review.  If what the lottery did is true, I believe they may have a case.  Whether it is age, sex or race it is still a form of discrimination no matter what, especially in a democrat controlled state govt. where this theoretically is non-existent (yeah right).  One cannot jump to conclusions without seeing both sides of the situation. It appears the lottery is trying to trim costs, this ain't the way to do it. 

Bill Richardson as Gov. of New Mexico and  presidential candidate should step in and take care of this situation ASAP.

justxploring:

 I acknowledge there are people in their "old age" who are still contributing to society and I have no problem with them continuing to work/lead normal lives just as long as they are still being productive and not endangering the lives of other people.  As I stated, in the case of airline pilots, they should be allowed to continue to pilot jets as long as they pass all performance tests and health checks.  The key difference between my personal story and the examples you cited is that carpentry as well as sales requires "physically demanding" work whereas scientific and governing is all about your mental state and reasoning abilities.  That explains why one sees so many "elderly" heads of state, senators, governors, presidents, etc and not so many elderly construction workers.  It's mental vs physical.  And if an elderly person has been planning appropriately and saving and investing during their long career, then they should have other options available to enjoy life instead of merely working just to be able to still live.  But I would venture to guess that the sales reps in this case did not properly plan and invest so they could retire, so they see a lawsuit as the next best avenue to funding their retirement...I am certain they would not seek to start buying lottery tickets in hopes of winning in order to fund their retirement!

"I am certain they would not seek to start buying lottery tickets in hopes of winning in order to fund their retirement!"

Why not?  Lots of old people are winning lotteries too.

Increasing the sales territory by 70% and decreasing sales............ positions by 11 ("old people").............  must have required....... the brains of a HAVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL............................"JANITOR"

?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

What are your qualifications,...................Mr. Tom Romero, CEO &

HOW much does your SALARY & BENEFIT$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

cost the CHILDREN's college FUND each year????????????????????

I would be "surprised" if the S&M DIRECTOR does not require the

new "SALES PERSON's" team to bend over backwards if they wish

to keep their.............................................................................JOB!

Let's send a letter of "PRAISE" to the Gov. & CEO!

YES,....Let's "SAVE" the children and teach them........."WELL"$$$$$

THANK$$$$$$$$$$ to the great state of AZ & management TOO!!!