Source: https://discriminationandsexualharassmentlawyers.com/age-discrimination/
Timestamp: 2019-04-20 02:51:38+00:00

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What is Age Discrimination in the Workplace?
Age discrimination occurs anytime you are treated differently or unfairly in your work environment because of your age. Age Discrimination does not have to be based on your status as an older employee. Sometimes discrimination based on age can be because you are too young. Ageism is illegal and the age discrimination lawyers at the Derek Smith Law Group, Pllc., offer a free consultation and charge no fee unless we recover for you in your age discrimination case in New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. Call today (877) 469-5297.
The challenge in age discrimination claims is not to prove that someone was fired or denied a job under suspicious circumstances, but rather that age or years of experience played a defining role in the employer’s decision.
Derek T. Smith Law Group, PLLC is a New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia age discrimination law firm that strives to protect older workers from age-based discrimination or harassment in the workplace. With our understanding of New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania age discrimination law, our New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia employment discrimination attorneys act as mediators as well as litigate to recover losses due to workplace unfairness. In many areas of industry, even those not traditionally known for an age bias, instances are beginning to occur where job assessments, promotions, raises, and other metrics are being driven by an employee’s age and not his/her performance. Reverse this disturbing trend by discussing your age discrimination case with our New York City, New Jersey or Philadelphia age discrimination lawyers. Don’t be a victim, your age discrimination attorney serving New York City, New Jersey, and Philadelphia is here for you at the Derek T. Smith Law Group, PLLC.
The ADEA stands for the Age Discrimination in Employment Act. It is a federal law that governs age discrimination. Enacted in 1967, the ADEA promotes the employment of older workers based on abilities and skills rather than age. It also prevents age discrimination in the workplace, plus helps solve the problems that arise with an aging workforce.
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) protects those 40 years of age or older from age discrimination in New York City, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. Under the ADEA, it is unlawful to discriminate against job applicants or employees because of their age.
This encompasses any condition or privilege of employment including all forms of compensation and benefits. An age discrimination lawyer in New York City, New Jersey or Philadelphia can advise you of the applicable laws.
If employees work for state or federal governments or employers with 20 or more workers, ADEA protects them from age discrimination. ADEA applies to employment agencies and labor organizations as well.
It is also unlawful to retaliate against individuals for opposing employment practices that discriminate based on age or filing a lawsuit under the ADEA.
your employer took such an action because of your age.
The Derek Smith Law Group, PLLC has highly skilled New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia age discrimination attorneys to assist you.
The ADEA makes it unlawful to include age preferences or specifications in job notices or advertisements. But where age is a bona fide occupational qualification for the job, notices or ads may specify an age limit.
While the ADEA does not specifically prohibit an employer from asking for your age or birth date, such inquiries may deter older workers from applying for employment. New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia age discrimination attorneys can review these requests for age information to determine if they are lawful. If you have any questions, Derek Smith Law Group, PLLC has age discrimination lawyers in New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia available for free consultation.
Under NYC law, age discrimination occurs when an employer to refuses to hire or employ, bar or discharges from employment, a person based on their age, or discriminates against such person in pay or conditions and privileges of employment.
8-07 (1) forbids employment discrimination against anyone at least eighteen (18) years of age by an employer, apprenticeship or training program with more than four (4) employees.
Passed to promote and protect the employment of New Yorkers based on their ability rather than their age, § 8-07 (1) seeks to prohibit arbitrary age discrimination in employment and to help employers and employees find ways of meeting problems arising from the impact of age on employment in New York.
An employer is liable for the discriminatory acts of their employees if: (1) the employee exercised managerial or supervisory responsibility; or (2) the employer knew of the discriminatory act and failed to take immediate and appropriate corrective actions to remedy and prevent such conduct once it had been discovered. An employer is deemed to have known of an employee’s discriminatory conduct where that conduct was known by another employee who exercised managerial or supervisory responsibility; or (3) the employer should have known of the discriminatory conduct and failed to exercise reasonable care in preventing the conduct.
Before beginning any employment discrimination cases based on age in NYC, it is of the utmost importance that the alleged incident is reported to a supervisor or someone designated by the employer, such as the HR department. Like all cases, filing an employment discrimination claim based on age starts with the complaint. All employment discrimination cases must be filed with New York City Commission on Human Rights within one year of the alleged discriminatory act.
Under § 8-07 (1) an employer cannot refuse to hire, promote or terminate an individual based on their age. The employer must provide the same terms and conditions of employment, salary and benefits of employment regardless of age. It must be noted, these protection include both apprentice, training and internship programs.
These protections not only apply to the hiring and life of employment of an employee, they also extend to the application and advertising of the open position. It is an unlawfully discriminatory practice to make any inquiry or application which sets limitations based on age, whether explicit or implied. However, there is an exception which allows employers to make such inquiries if they can show a legitimate reason, such as licensing, for inquiring about an applicant’s age. The age discrimination attorneys at the Derek Smith Law Group can walk you through all areas of your EEOC claim or Age discrimination lawsuit. Call today for a free consultation. Our age discrimination lawyers charge no fee unless we recover for you in your discrimination case.
Under New York City Law, an employer is forbidden from establishing seniority, layoff or recall lists based on age. This does not absolutely bar seniority systems, however, such systems must be based on length of employment as opposed to age.
Under NYC law it is also unlawful for any labor organization or union to deny benefits, services or membership based on an employee’s age. § 8-07 (1) also prohibits mandatory retirements, to include reduction of retirement pay and benefits based on the age of retirement; with an exception being made for certain executives and persons of high policy-making positions. Employment agencies are not exempt from § 8-07(1), they must provide services to individuals over the age of forty (40) along with recommendations on the same basis they would provide to clients of other age groups.
Generally, NYC administrative law § 8 -07 (1) provides very similar protections as that of Federal and State law. While not always clear, if an employee feels as though they were denied employment, terminated from employment or the conditions of their employment were altered because of their age, then they may have a claim for employment discrimination based on age.
HOW DO AGE DISCRIMINATION CLAIMS WORK IN NYC?
Under NYC administrative law § 8 – 07 (1) an employee must show the employer discriminated against an employee based on their age. Cases can be convoluted, here is an example of a real case to demonstrate how discrimination claims work in NYC.
In the case of the Commission on Human Rights ex. Rel. Beverly Campbell v. Personal Employment Services. Here, the Beverly alleged that Personal Employment Services refused to hire her because she was over fifty (50), violating § 8 – 07 (1). The court looked at the documentary evidence presented by the employee in the form of testimony describing a receptionist of Personal Employment Services stated it was against their company policy to hire someone over the age of fifty. The court took this, together with all other evidence gathered, and ordered Personal Employment Services to pay Beverly $1,000 in compensation for missed payments, and further ordered Personal Employment Services to pay a $5000 fine.
WHAT ARE NEW YORK STATE’S AGE DISCRIMINATION LAWS?
Under New York State laws, age discrimination is the act of treating an individual differently based on their age. New York laws are similar to Federal laws in many ways. In New York, it is unlawful for an employer or licensing agency to refuse to hire, employ, license, bar or discriminate against an individual in terms of promotion, compensation or in terms, conditions or privileges of employment because of an individual’s age. A difference between New York State and Federal law in New York applies to individuals as young as eighteen.
An exception exists for the compulsory retirement of any employee who has attained the age of sixty –five (65) and for a person, who for the two- year period immediately before retirement, is employed in a bona fide executive or a high policymaking position if such employee is entitled to an immediate non- forfeitable annually retirement benefit from a pension, profit sharing, savings, or deferred compensation plan, or any combination of such plans which equal at least forty-four thousand dollars.
Another exception is the compulsory retirement of any employee who has attained seventy years of age and is serving under a contract for unlimited tenure at a nonpublic institution of higher education.
WHAT ARE NEW JERSEY’S AGE DISCRIMINATION LAWS?
Many State laws reflect similar procedures to, often mirroring, Federal laws, with a few exceptions. Under the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination it is unlawful to subject people to differential treatment based on their age. This includes discriminating against individuals because they are older than others or because they are younger than others, with special exceptions being made for those under eighteen (18) and those over seventy (70).
A New Jersey employer may not refuse to hire you because of your age; fire you because of your age or force you to retire because of your age. When applying for a job, a prospective employer may not use your age as a reason to prevent you from applying for or getting the job, unless you are under 18 or over 70.
During the life of your employment, an employer must not treat an employee differently or make decisions such as job assignments, pay levels, employee benefits or other terms, conditions or privileges of employment based on one’s age. Nor may an employer force you to retire early based on your age.
WHAT IS AGE DISCRIMINATION IN PHILADELPHIA?
The Philadelphia Fair Practices Ordinance protects individuals rights to equal and fair treatment in employment. These protections include discrimination by former employers, current employers and potential employers. These protections also extend to labor unions and employment agencies.
Generally, employment discrimination occurs in Philadelphia when employment opportunities are denied, but it also includes when someone is treated less favorably, not afforded the same privileges and benefits of employment or if someone’s compensations are affected based on a discriminatory reason. Age discrimination refers to the situations where an individual is discriminated against based on their age. In employment, an individual must be forty years old or older.
The Pennsylvania Human Relations Act closely follows the ADEA with the major exception being it applies to employers with as little as four (4) employees. Before bringing a claim in federal or state court, you must first file a claim with The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, this investigative body is charged with governing discriminations claims in the Common Wealth of Pennsylvania.
The Older Workers Benefit Protection Act of 1990 (OWBPA) amended the ADEA to prohibit employers from denying benefits to older employees. An employer may reduce benefits based on age only if the cost of providing the reduced benefits to older workers is equal to the cost of providing benefits to younger workers. Age discrimination not only causes potential financial harm to an employee, but it can also cause emotional or even physical harm if an employee was injured in the workplace due to an act of age discrimination. Regardless of what type of age discrimination you or a loved one experienced, it is important to act quickly by speaking with a top-rated New York City, New Jersey or Philadelphia age discrimination lawyer. Our attorneys know the benefits and options available to you. By speaking with one of our the New York City, New Jersey or Philadelphia age discrimination lawyers at Derek Smith Law Group, PLLC today you will greatly increase the chances of being successful in your age discrimination case.
If you need a New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia Age Discrimination Attorney or information on ADEA waivers or age discrimination lawsuits in New York City, New Jersey and Philadelphia, please contact Derek Smith Law Group, PLLC at the employment law firm of Derek T. Smith Law Group, PLLC by calling our toll-free number 877-469-5297. Contact us online by filling out the form at the top right of this page and clicking submit to schedule a Free Consultation.

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