10 Facts About Age Discrimination

10 Facts About Age Discrimination
When it comes to age discrimination in the workplace, it’s important to know your legal rights. While there are laws in place that protect workers 40 years of age and older from age discrimination (i.e. the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967), many men and women still are unsure of their rights and available options for taking action.

The following are 10 fast facts that will allow you to better understand this important workplace issue.

1. Employers, or potential employers, are not allowed to ask for an employee’s age or for details that might suggest his or her age. This includes the years he or she graduated high school or college.
2. A survey conducted by the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) showed that most people perceive the most common form of age discrimination in the workplace to be when an older man or woman is not hired for a job, instead, passed up for a younger applicant.
3. Age discrimination does not just pertain to the hiring process. Age discrimination can be an issue at any stage of employment. This can include being passed up for a promotion or subjected to harassment because of age.
4. A majority of Americans believe that age discrimination becomes a real issue when an individual reaches the age of 50.
5. An additional AARP survey would suggest that discriminating against employees 50 years of age and older is counterproductive for a business. The study shows that employees of this age are some of the most engaged employees, especially compared to their younger counterparts.
6. A look at 2016 data showed the prevalence of age discrimination. The EEOC received over 22,800 age discrimination complaints. This does not account for the thousands of complaints that are not formally filed by victims.
7. Women perceive age discrimination to be more of a factor than men do. An AARP survey showed that 72 percent of women said that employees between the ages of 45 and 74 face age discrimination while just 57 percent of men said the same thing.
8. The Supreme Court dealt a significant blow to age discrimination victims in 2009, passing a law that forced plaintiffs and their Los Angeles employment lawyer to shoulder a higher burden of proof in order to find success in their cases.
9. Understandably, roughly 8 in 10 Americans over the age of 50 would like to see Congress create stronger laws to curb this common form of discrimination.
10. Employees that face discrimination can take action. First, try working through the employer’s grievance process. If that fails, or the claim is ignored, contact the EEOC or work with our Los Angeles age discrimination lawyers to file a lawsuit.

Employees have the right to be judged solely on their skills, qualifications and ability to fulfill job duties — not their age. An age discrimination attorney Los Angeles is a valuable resource for anyone facing instances of age discrimination.