Cleveland's University Hospitals ordered to pay nearly $1M in age bias suit

A jury ordered University Hospital to pay a Euclid woman $900,000 in an age discrimination lawsuit for firing her from the job she held for 30 years. The jury ruled that Gloria Parks, 56, was unduly blamed and fired for a patient mix-up while her younger counterparts were never disciplined for their involvement in the incident. Jurors heard more than a week of testimony in Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court before returning the verdict. The jury based the monetary award on Parks' earning potential had she not been fired. The jury did not consider punitive damages against the hospital. Parks, who worked in the hospital's pre-admission testing department, filed suit in 2009. She claimed that her supervisor Steve Diltz, constantly harangued the veteran medical assistant while showing favoritism to the younger women in the department.