Allstate Insurance is being sued with a class-action lawsuit on behalf of 6400 agents. Prior to 1990, Allstate had employee agents and independent contractor agents. The employee agents were entitled to health insurance and retirement benefits (contractors were not). In 1990, Allstate eliminated new hiring of employee agents (all new agents had to be independent contractors). Shortly thereafter, Allstate forced the existing employee agents to convert from employees to independent contractors. More than 90% of those agents were over the age of 40. In the conversion process, these employees lost their benefits and they had to sign waivers promising not to sue Allstate. Those who did not sign the waiver received lower separation payments. An Allstate official is quoted as saying the company expected to lose up to 1/5 of its employee agents, most of whom would be older agents who supposedly would not want to learn soon-to-be implemented computer technologies.

Is this Disparate Impact or Disparate Treatment?