Man blames Maxim Crane, supervisor of age discrimination

CHARLESTON – A Kanawha County man is suing over claims his job in sales was terminated due to his age.

Gregory C. Good filed a lawsuit July 23 in Kanawha Circuit Court against Maxim Crane Works of Wilder, Ky., and Jonathan Asbury, citing age discrimination.

According to the complaint, Good, an employee of Maxim, was offered a new sales position in the defendant's Nitro office in January 2013, a job with no sales quotas that he began on April 8, 2013. Good says five months into the new position, he was called to a meeting with an outside consultant who asked him his age, and in October 2013, it was suggested that he retire so the company could replace him with a "young, go-getter," comments which Good reported to Asbury as discrimination.

The complaint states in February, Good secured two lucrative accounts but was informed he was not meeting the new quota of $150,000 in sales each month, despite the fact the position was originally said to have no quota.

The lawsuit says on Feb. 27, a Maxim executive asked Good his age, which was 58 at the time, and then fired him, just shy of 20 years with Maxim and its predecessors. The defendants are accused of age discrimination, civil conspiracy and violations of the West Virginia Wage Payment and Collection Act.

Good is seeking back pay, front pay, damages and attorney fees.

He is being represented by attorneys Constance H. Weber and Erin J. Webb of Kay Casto & Chaney in Charleston. The case has been assigned to circuit judge Tod Kaufman.

The case number is Kanawha Circuit Court 14-C-1335