Articles tagged 'age discrimination'

“Younger People Are the Future” Comment Caused an Age Bias Claim

by Eric B. Meyer on Dec 3, 2012, 10:25 AM | 1 comment

By Eric B. Meyer

Hey employers!

Want to guarantee yourself a jury trial in an age-discrimination case? Just mention the word “younger” to any employee age forty or above right around the time you fire him.

In Brazil v. Volkert, Inc., the plaintiff claimed that, just before he was terminated, one of the Assistant Vice Presidents told him, “Younger people are the future of the company.” The company admitted that this comment was made, but claimed that it fired the plaintiff because work had dried up and the plaintiff refused a transfer. Read more…

Classic TLNT

The Great Workplace Challenge: How to Make Better Use of Older Workers

by Peter Cappelli and Bill Novelli on Oct 5, 2012, 8:10 AM | No comments yet

Editor’s note: Sometimes, readers ask about past TLNT articles that they have heard about but may have missed. That’s why every Friday we’re republishing a Classic TLNT post that some of you have asked about.

By Peter Cappelli and Bill Novelli

Why is it that we have such a hard time continuing to find work as we grow older, especially as employers complain about not being able to find workers with the right attitudes, who have the skills to “hit the group running,” and who can make immediate contributions?

One would think employers would be falling over themselves to retain older employees, to let them keep working in more flexible ways, and to hire other older workers. But they are not. Read more…

HR Basics, Legal Issues

Employment Law Basics: ADEA and the Dangers of Age Discrimination

by Mark Toth on Oct 4, 2012, 12:20 PM | No comments yet

Employment laws can be confusing and downright scary.

They don’t have to be. As a public service, from now until my special Halloween webinar Answers to the World’s Scariest Employment Law Questions, I’ll be tackling each major law one by one to give you what you REALLY need to know. By the end, you’ll have handy one-page cheat sheets for each and every law and your terror level will be reduced to zero.

Today’s Topic: Age Discrimination. Read more…

HR News & Trends, Legal Issues

EEOC Issues Final Regulations on Reasonable Factors Other Than Age

by Eric B. Meyer on Apr 17, 2012, 10:45 AM | 1 comment

By Eric B. Meyer

Last month, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) issued its “Final Regulation on Disparate Impact and Reasonable Factors Other than Age” (RFOA) under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA).

Wait, wha, wha, what the heck is an RFOA? (Here’s the Cliff Notes version because, like, you could click on the link above, dudes.)

Here’s what the EEOC had to say about the new rule in this press release: Read more…

HR News & Trends

Weekly Wrap: It’s a Age-Old Question – Would You Hire Meryl Streep?

by John Hollon on Mar 2, 2012, 11:58 AM | 1 comment

Let me be honest about this: I’m an older guy (hard to admit that), but I’m not delusional. I know better than anyone that in today’s economy, if I were to lose my job tomorrow, my chances of finding another one at or near my same salary level are virtually nil.

There are a lot of reasons for that, but I think the main one is that businesses and hiring managers just don’t put much value in experience and wisdom anymore — especially if it comes with a price tag commensurate with the years it takes to acquire it.

Not all that long ago, I applied to a job posting that wanted very specific experience that not too many people have, although I did. Problem was, they didn’t want to pay very much for that experience. Read more…

Legal Issues

This Is Why HR Should Document Employee Issues in a Timely Manner

by Eric B. Meyer on Jan 2, 2012, 9:15 AM | No comments yet

Last week, a federal appellate court allowed a white assistant manager to pursue claims of reverse race discrimination against a bank because the reasons that the bank offered to the court for firing the plaintiff did not jibe with the documentation in its own file. Oh, wait a minute, there was zero documentation in the file.

I smell some trouble for the employer and some good lessons for my business readers.

How does one prove reverse-race discrimination? Read more…

Legal Issues

Not Following Your Written Policies May Be Worse Than No Policy at All

by Eric B. Meyer on Dec 9, 2011, 10:35 AM | No comments yet

By Eric B. Meyer

What’s the point of having a written handbook policy if you aren’t going to follow it? Better yet, what are the consequences of not following that handbook policy?

(Hint: they’re bad).

This recent federal-court age-discrimination decision underscores the importance of companies following their own established rules and protocols. Read more…

Legal Issues

When Does Asking About Retirement Becomes Age Discrimination?

by Eric B. Meyer on Dec 8, 2011, 10:57 AM | 1 comment

By Eric B. Meyer

Back in August, I wrote about a case where a federal court held that an employer inquiring about an employee’s retirement plans, alone, does not discriminate on the basis of age. But what about relentlessly browbeating a plaintiff into retiring? Could that be age discrimination? What do you think,

The case is Franks v. Village of Bolivar. Gary Franks, the former Water and Street Superintendent for the Village of Bolivar, Ohio was terminated after 33 years on the job. Franks subsequently sued, claiming that his former boss, Mayor Rebecca Hubble, made several ageist comments to him which suggested that age motivated his firing: Read more…

HR News & Trends, Legal Issues

Test Your HR Legal Smarts: Case of The Naughty Poet and the Bad Haircut

by John Zappe on Dec 2, 2011, 9:03 AM | No comments yet

With all the suing going on these days, adding J.D. to your SPHR might be a wise investment. Considering that the average compensatory award in a federal employment suit is $500,000 while law school tuition and books run about $100,000, you might even convince your employer to pay for that Juris Doctor.

Hurry up, though, because as you study torts and contracts and property, your supervisors and managers, to say nothing of the rank and file, are doing some of the darnedest things.

For instance, the owner of a convenience store lost a hostile workplace action this year over his “firing contest.” Then there’s the $45 million lawsuit filed by a nurse who claims her co-workers accessed her medical files and made her the butt of office gossip about her virginity.

Now before you go saying something like “it can’t happen here,” let me throw some numbers at you: Read more…

Legal Issues

Court: Hostile Work Environment Can Be Part of Age Discrimination Claim

by Eric B. Meyer on Sep 13, 2011, 9:47 AM | No comments yet

By Eric B. Meyer

You know what’s not a good business practice for a car dealership?

Referring to an older male employee as “old man,” “pops,” and “old mother******” and then steering car sales away from him to younger employees. Age discrimination is serious business, yo.

The case is Dediol v. Best Chevrolet, Inc. Paul Mollica at employmentlawblog.info summarizes the colorful facts: Read more…

Articles tagged 'age discrimination'

“Younger People Are the Future” Comment Caused an Age Bias Claim

The Great Workplace Challenge: How to Make Better Use of Older Workers

Employment Law Basics: ADEA and the Dangers of Age Discrimination

EEOC Issues Final Regulations on Reasonable Factors Other Than Age

Weekly Wrap: It’s a Age-Old Question – Would You Hire Meryl Streep?

This Is Why HR Should Document Employee Issues in a Timely Manner

Not Following Your Written Policies May Be Worse Than No Policy at All

When Does Asking About Retirement Becomes Age Discrimination?

Test Your HR Legal Smarts: Case of The Naughty Poet and the Bad Haircut

Court: Hostile Work Environment Can Be Part of Age Discrimination Claim

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