(LEGAFI) -- A Texas freight company has agreed to pay eight former dockworkers $400,000 to settle an age discrimination lawsuit brought by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

The workers allege in the age discrimination lawsuit that Central Freight Lines, Inc. discriminated against them – all of whom were at least 50 years old – by selecting them for termination during an August 2007 “reduction of force.” The workers allege they were selected because of their age, and that the reduction-in-force was simply a ruse to fire the older workers, some of whom had worked for the company for 20 or more years.

According to their age discrimination lawsuit, the workers were called names such as “grandpa,” “old farts” and other derogatory terms by their supervisor, who had been asked to prepare a list of the men to be terminated.

The EEOC further charged the company with changing its attendance and disciplinary policy so that the men, who had not had more than a few disciplinary write-ups, “were suddenly put on corrective action and eligible for termination under the new policy.”

The company then replaced the older employees with younger hires.

Discriminating against an individual because of his or her age violates The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (“ADEA”).

In addition to paying the men $400,000, Central Freight Lines also agreed to train management and supervisory personnel at its Dallas and Fort Worth terminals on equal employment opportunity policies and procedures. The company will also commit to enforce a written policy against age discrimination.

"It is an injustice to terminate these loyal workers who gave so many years of their lives to Central Freight," said William C. Backhaus, Senior Trial Attorney for the EEOC. "Laying people off because of their age is a violation of federal law."

“Central Freight treated these experienced dockworkers like they were expendable,” added EEOC attorney Suzanne M. Anderson. “This case shows that EEOC will remain vigilant in our protection of older workers.”

“Reductions in force are unfortunately not unusual in tough economic times, but a freight business should realize that unloading more experienced older dockworkers while pushing to hire younger ones is not the answer,” said Robert A. Canino, Regional Attorney for the EEOC’s Dallas District Office. “The costs that can result from age discrimination can lead to yet a heavier load to bear.”

Central Freight responded in a statement by saying it “has denied from the onset of this litigation that it discriminated” against the workers or violated any federal or state statute.