Best Buy hit with lawsuit over layoffs of IT workers

Richard Walstrom said this week that he sensed something was wrong during a job fair in May, when he saw some of his IT co-workers, who had also been told by Best Buy Co. Inc. that they were losing their jobs. “There were a high percentage of people with grey hair,” said Walstrom, who’s 57. “It was a lot of us. I didn’t really realize what had happened until you look around and say, ‘What’s wrong with this picture?’ “

Walstrom is one of 44 former Best Buy IT workers who filed a class-action lawsuit on Wednesday claiming that the Richfield, Minn.-based electronics retailer engaged in a pattern of age discrimination in terminating their jobs. The plaintiffs range from 40 to 71 years old, and their average age is 51, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota.

The charges relate to layoffs that were announced in April, when Best Buy said it planned to outsource its IT operations to Accenture Ltd., as well as to a smaller round of cuts that took place in October 2003.

A spokeswoman for Best Buy said it hadn’t received the complaint as of Thursday. But the retailer issued a statement saying it was aware of the suit. “We believe these claims are without merit and intend to vigorously defend the action,” Best Buy said.