When it comes to age discrimination, employers have not necessarily become more enlightened with the passage of time. Rather, they have developed more sophisticated methods for getting rid of older workers without apparent discrimination.
At the Law Offices of Rheuban & Gresen, we have extensive experience litigating age discrimination claims, especially those involving disguised layoffs, downsizing, and departmental reorganizations. We know how to look beneath the surface of the stated reasoning behind an adverse employment action (such as termination) to determine whether an actionable age-based claim exists.
For a free consultation about your age discrimination claim, contact a workplace rights attorney at the Law Offices of Rheuban & Gresen.
Protecting Employees From Ageism in the Workplace
Age discrimination — adverse treatment of workers age 40 or older —
is prohibited by both the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and California's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA). Federal, state and local agencies that receive federal assistance, including many post-secondary educational institutions, are all bound by this legislation.
Despite these equal employment opportunity laws, the incentives for employers to prefer younger employees over older workers are obvious. In most cases, younger workers are less expensive, easier to intimidate, less knowledgeable about their workplace rights, and cheaper to insure, and better looking. We've seen that this last factor can be critically important from the employer's perspective in many industries, such as:
- College recruitment
- Entertainment
- Pharmaceuticals
- Sales
- Fashion and design
In the case of corporate downsizing and layoffs, it is not always easy to tell whether a particular employee was chosen for termination based on age discrimination. Or, when an early retirement incentive is offered, it may be unclear whether it is a legitimate business practice or a pretext to get rid of older employees.
In some cases, so-called "reorganizations" have resulted in older, highly paid workers being replaced by younger, cheaper employees. When no meaningful functional changes are made during a reorganization, it may be a mere pretext for age discrimination. In some such cases, courts have awarded punitive damages.
We accept age discrimination and all EEO cases on a contingent fee basis. You pay no attorney's fees unless your case settles favorably or we win at trial. If your situation appears to be a widespread problem throughout your company, we'll also consider the possibility of class action litigation.
To get a better idea of your legal options under the ADEA and FEHA, contact an attorney at the Los Angeles Law Offices of Rheuban & Gresen for a free consultation. We accept all claims on a contingent fee basis — we collect no attorney's fees unless you win by settlement, judgment, award, etc.
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