A Texas trucking firm refused to rent a 64-year-old driver with greater than 20 years of expertise as a result of its insurance coverage supplier allegedly wouldn’t cowl him, in line with a federal lawsuit.
The U.S. Equal Employment Alternative Fee (EEOC) filed go well with Sept. 24 towards Pharr, Texas-based Trancasa USA Inc., alleging the corporate systematically rejected older truck driver candidates and imposed stricter driving-record and medical documentation necessities based mostly on age.
The lawsuit, filed within the U.S. District Courtroom for the Southern District of Texas in McAllen, alleges Trancasa violated the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), which prohibits employment discrimination towards people 40 and older.
Trancasa USA operates 171 energy models and employs 198 drivers, with roughly 18.8 million miles reported in 2025, in line with the Federal Motor Service Security Administration. The corporate’s web site additionally describes a broader transportation operation serving the U.S., Mexico and Canada, promoting greater than 400 transport models and 1,000 semi-trailers.
In response to the Sept. 24 grievance, Trancasa restricted driver hiring based mostly on eligibility requirements related to a industrial legal responsibility insurance coverage coverage bought in 2023.
The requirements allegedly required drivers to be no less than 23 years outdated and no older than 65. Drivers youthful than 25 or older than 60 who had any site visitors violations or accidents throughout the earlier three years had been thought-about ineligible.
The coverage additionally allegedly required drivers ages 63 to 65 to supply a long-form medical examination report, often called Kind MCSA-5875.
“Employers can’t discriminate towards employees by claiming that the discrimination is required or licensed by a contract with one other occasion, akin to a buyer or insurance coverage supplier,” stated Ronald L. Phillips, appearing EEOC Dallas regional legal professional, in a assertion.
“Such agreements and their implementation are unlawful, and each events to the contract place themselves at appreciable danger of potential litigation and legal responsibility.”
Driver with clear document allegedly rejected
The grievance identifies Gilbert Cerda, a 64-year-old truck driver with greater than 20 years of expertise and a clear driving document, as the person whose discrimination cost led to the lawsuit.
Cerda utilized for a truck driving place with Trancasa in November 2023 and met with an organization recruiter, in line with the grievance.
The recruiter allegedly informed Cerda that his software would require evaluate by Trancasa’s insurance coverage service as a result of he was approaching the coverage’s most eligible age.
A number of weeks later, Cerda returned to Trancasa’s facility in Pharr to inquire about his software.
In response to the EEOC, the recruiter knowledgeable Cerda that the insurance coverage supplier had decided he couldn’t be employed due to his age.
The grievance alleges Trancasa rejected Cerda round Nov. 27, 2023, regardless of his {qualifications} and driving historical past.
EEOC contends Cerda was not the one applicant affected. Since no less than June 2023, the corporate allegedly refused to rent a number of candidates over age 60 underneath the identical eligibility requirements.
The company additionally alleges Trancasa required drivers and candidates ages 63 to 65 to submit Kind MCSA-5875 as a situation of employment whereas not routinely imposing the identical requirement on youthful drivers.
The EEOC states that federal legislation doesn’t require trucking corporations to acquire or be supplied with the long-form medical examination report.
Insurance coverage supplier stays unverified
The EEOC grievance doesn’t determine the insurance coverage supplier accountable for the disputed driver eligibility requirements.
Trancasa switched between a number of insurance coverage suppliers between June 2021 to June 2024.
The FMCSA filings set up a reported legal responsibility insurance coverage relationship, however don’t independently set up which insurance coverage supplier issued or enforced the particular age-based necessities described within the lawsuit.
BigRig contacted Trancasa and several other of the corporate’s earlier insurance coverage suppliers throughout the time interval of Cerda’s employment software in search of touch upon the allegations, the insurance coverage protection and the corporate’s driver eligibility insurance policies. None had responded as of publication.
EEOC seeks damages and modifications to hiring insurance policies
The EEOC alleges Trancasa’s practices violated federal legislation by denying employment alternatives to older candidates and subjecting sure drivers to totally different employment circumstances due to their age.
The company is in search of again pay, prejudgment curiosity, potential employment or entrance pay, and liquidated damages for Cerda and different affected candidates and staff.
The grievance additionally seeks a everlasting injunction prohibiting discriminatory employment practices and requiring Trancasa to implement insurance policies guaranteeing equal employment alternatives.
The EEOC issued a reasonable-cause willpower in March and tried to resolve the matter via its administrative conciliation course of earlier than submitting go well with.
The company alleges the violations had been willful. These allegations haven’t been adjudicated, and no financial damages have been awarded.
The case is U.S. EEOC v. Trancasa USA Inc., No. 7:26-cv-00457, within the Southern District of Texas.
Why it issues: The federal lawsuit towards Trancasa USA Inc. raises questions on how motor carriers apply insurance coverage underwriting necessities with out violating federal age-discrimination legal guidelines.
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