Clear Lake man accuses Home Depot of age discrimination

A Clear Lake man says he was fired from his job at The Home Depot because of his age.

David Franklin Reed filed a lawsuit July 26 in Harris County District Court against Home Depot #6560.

According to the complaint, Reed had been employed by The Home Depot in Clear Lake Shores from 1994 until January. Reed, 73, says in November 2010, three customers made comments about his age, including a question about why he was still working at his age. A month later, Reed says he received a high score on an employee evaluation and even received a raise.

In January, Reed says he was fired from the home improvement store. He says a supervisor told him it was because he had allegedly been rude to customers during the exchange about his age in November. The 73-year-old argues he was actually fired because of his age.

Reed accuses The Home Depot of violating Texas' Labor Code. He is asking for an undetermined amount of money in damages plus court fees. His attorney, John-Baptist A. Sekumade, has requested a jury trial.

Harris County District Court Case No. 2011-43833

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Harris County Courthouse. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it only represents one side of the story.