age discrimination Flashcards
what is the age discrimination statute
adea
Age Discrimination in Employment Act
what is the adea limited to
individuals who are at least 40 years of age
what is the disprate treatment under the adea
the employee establish that:
He is over 40 years old;
He met the applicable job qualifications;
He suffered an adverse employment action; and
There is some additional evidence that age was a factor in the employer’s termination decision.
Burden then shifts to employer to articulate a legitimate nondiscriminatory reason for its adverse employment action.
Then the burden shifts back to the plaintiff to show the employer’s reason was pretextual.
what is the key takeaway from hazen paper
Hazen Paper hired Biggins as their technical director in 1997. They fired him in 1986, when he was 62 years old.
Biggins brought suit against Hazen, alleging a violation of the ADEA. He claimed his age had been a determinative factor in their decision to fire him.
Hazen contested this claim, asserting that Biggins was fired for doing business with competitors of Hazen.
there is no disparate treatment under the ADEA when the factor motivating the employer is some feature other than the employee’s age.
what is the key takeaway from palasota
Palasota was employed as a sales associate by Haggar for 28 years until he was terminated at 51 years old.
The company decided to change its image and transferred many sales functions to a group of young women. Palasota was told that his position was eliminated and that his services were not needed.
Palasota sued for age discrimination.
evidence of age discrimination must be:
Age related;
Proximate in time to the termination;
Made by an individual with authority over the termination; and
Related to the employment decision.
what is the key takeaway from dediol
Dediol was employed at Best Chevrolet during the summer of 2007. Dediol was 65 years old and a practicing Christian.
He asked off from work to attend a church event. The assistant manager gave him permission but his direct manager, Clay, overruled that decision.
After this request to take off from work, Clay referred to him by names like, “Old mother *****,” “older man,” and “pops.”
Clay also made comments about Dediol’s religion and made violent threats.
A plaintiff may raise a hostile-work-environment claim based on age discrimination under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.
whats the key take away from general dynamics v cline
General Dynamics renegotiated its union contract to provide full health care benefits only to retirees who were more than 50 years old by July 1, 1997.
Cline fell two years short of 50 at the time of the deadline and was excluded permanently from receiving health benefits.
Cline filed suit against General Dynamics under the ADEA. Since the contract excluded workers between the ages of 40 and 49, Cline alleged that providing benefits only to retirees 50 and up was age discrimination.
SCOTUS held that the ADEA did not intend to stop an employer from favoring an older employee over a younger one.
whats the key take away from gross v fbl financial
Whether a plaintiff must present direct evidence of age discrimination in order to obtain a mixed-motives jury instruction under the ADEA?
Title VII’s burden shifting does NOT apply to the ADEA.
You have to show the reason you were fired was because of your age
But for single causation ; no mixed motive
what is the RFOA defense
It is acceptable to make an employment decision where that decision is based on a reasonable factor other than age.
Affirmative defense through which the employer bears the burden of proof.
what is the age exception for police officers and firefighters
Local jurisdictions can set mandatory retirement ages, as long as the minimum retirement age is at least 55; and the retirement age is part of a valid retirement plan.
what makes damages under the adea different than title vii
ADEA does not contain any provision for compensatory or punitive damages. Instead, it allows for liquidated damages.
