Age discrimination involves treating someone (an applicant or employee) less favorably because of his age. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) only forbids age discrimination against people who are age 40 or older. It does not protect workers under the age of 40, although some states do have laws that protect younger workers from age discrimination. It is not illegal for an employer or other covered entity to favor an older worker over a younger one, even if both workers are age 40 or older. Discrimination can occur when the victim and the person who inflicted the discrimination are  [ Read More ]

  By ABBY ELLIN | ABC News Aug. 13, 2012 When Madeleine Otto was offered the chance to open a credit card at Stein Mart, a department store in Tequesta, Fla., and save $10 on her purchases, she jumped at the chance. She handed the cashier her driver’s license, and waited for approval. Except it didn’t happen. Otto’s credit application was denied. “The cashier said, ‘I’m sorry, we can’t give you a credit card because you’re too old,’” said Otto, who turns 100 on October 18. Otto was dumbfounded. She had never heard of anyone being refused credit because of  [ Read More ]

The Case of the Older Men, the Younger Men, and the Naughty Emails Phil Miles at Lawffice Space writes here in his weekly edition of Case of the Week about a recent decision from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals — (PA, NJ, DE, and USVI). This case is about older employees who claim age discrimination, but admit sharing porn at work with one another. Guh?!? Well, ya see, these plaintiffs claimed that younger employees shared porn at work too and the company didn’t discipline the young bucks as much as the old heads. Ultimately, however, to prevail on a  [ Read More ]

By MOTOKO RICH Published: June 9, 2012 | NY Times PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — This retirement oasis in the desert has long beckoned those who want to spin out their golden years playing golf and sitting by the pool in the arid sunshine. But for Clare Keany, who turned 62 last fall and cannot find work, it feels more like a prison. Just a few miles from the gated estates of corporate chieftains and Hollywood stars, Ms. Keany lives in a tiny mobile home, barely getting by on little more than $1,082 a month from Social Security. “I would rather  [ Read More ]

Forced Retirement: Laws to Protect Workers While many people plan to work until age 65 when they become eligible for Social Security, others would prefer to retire at age 62 when their Medicare eligibility kicks in. For some long-time workers, retirement can also happen without warning. Unexpected health problems, companies going out of business, or a layoff can force you into retiring earlier than you might have planned. If an employee has planned to retire at 65, but then finds the quality of work atmosphere to be less than pleasant, their hours are repeatedly cut, or other (younger) employees are  [ Read More ]

According to the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, there has been a 17 percent increase in the number of age discrimination complaints filed since 2007. But, thanks to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), it is against the law for employers to discriminate against a person because of his or her age with respect to any term, condition, or privilege of employment, including hiring, firing, promotion, layoff, compensation, benefits, job assignments, and training. Some of the protections made by the ADEA include: Discriminatory Job Notices – Under the ADEA, it is unlawful for employers to include age  [ Read More ]

Age discrimination is the practice of letting a person’s age unfairly become a factor when deciding who receives a new job, a promotion, or other job benefit. It most commonly affects older workers who feel they have been discriminated against in favor of younger workers, but there have been cases involving younger workers being displaced by older workers. A 2005 survey of 2,600 human resource professionals and managers, published jointly by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and the Chartered Management Institute, found that 60 percent of the respondents claimed to have experienced some form of age-related discrimination. However,  [ Read More ]