The town of Cumberland has settled a lawsuit from a golf pro who said he was fired by the municipal golf course because of his age.
Gary Rees sued Cumberland in December 2022, saying he was fired in January 2021 at 78 years old by a manager of the town-owned Val Halla Golf Course who said the course should go in a “younger direction.”
Rees and the town reached a settlement Oct. 27. The lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice — meaning the claim can’t be re-filed in the same court — and without requiring attorney fees to be paid, according to court documents.
Calls to the town of Cumberland were not returned by time of publication. Rees’ attorney, Laura White, declined to comment on the settlement.
The Cumberland Town Council agreed to a settlement July 28 and the two sides were working to come to terms in late September but needed extra time, according to court records.
Two other “older” part-time workers from the pro shop were also fired around the same time as Rees, according to the lawsuit. He had worked as a golf pro for 45 years and was the head golf pro at Val Halla between 1976 and 1980, and then again between 1984 and 1992.
He was working as an assistant golf pro when he was fired in January 2021, and he was the only golf pro at the course who was a PGA professional.
The age discrimination against Rees started in 2019 when a new head golf pro was hired, according to the lawsuit. The new manager, Nick Plummer, was at least 40 years younger than Rees and allegedly told Rees the course wanted to go in a “younger direction” when Rees was fired.
Plummer was not a defendant in the lawsuit. He is listed on the course’s website as the head golf pro as of Wednesday.
Rees never received any negative feedback about his work from Town Manager William Shane, who said Rees would have a job at Val Halla as long as he wanted, per the lawsuit. In a response to the lawsuit, the town said Shane did not give positive or negative feedback to Rees.
Plummer allegedly told Rees at one point that “I’ve got one of the oldest pro shops in the state,” per the lawsuit. The town denied that allegation in the response.
