Ocean City, N.J., has agreed to a monetary settlement with a former Beach Patrol lifeguard, who sued claiming age discrimination.
The city will pay Michael Hamilton, 67, $50,000. He sued the Ocean City Fire Department in 2009, claiming that former Fire Chief Joseph Foglio Jr. and his department changed qualification rules after Hamilton filed an ethics complaint alleging nepotism.
According to reports, Hamilton, a 40-year veteran on the beach, failed a running test, which would have ended his career. He later outperformed younger rookies in other tests, allowing him to remain on the Beach Patrol.
Foglio did hire his daughter to the beach patrol in 2006, but an investigation following Hamilton’s complaint found no evidence of nepotism. Read more...
