Workers who are 40 years old or older must be given the same benefits and opportunities as younger workers. They must be hired and promoted without regards to their age. The federal law, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, provides older workers with these rights. Younger workers have no such protection under federal law, although a few states, such as Michigan, Minnesota, New York and Oregon, have given workers under 40 protection from age discrimination. When an older worker believes that he or she has been unfairly treated because of his age, he or she can hire one of the employment law attorneys in Northampton, MA.
Filing a complaint with a federal agency such as the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission is a time-consuming and complicated task. If a worker believes that he or she works for a company that discriminates against older workers, the lawyers will know how to gather the evidence needed to prove that it is actually happening. It is illegal for a company to stop investing in a worker because of his age. Employment law attorneys in Northampton, MA will subpoena the records of the company to determine which employees receive training. They will look for patterns of discrimination. This could include sending only employees who are under thirty for computer training, giving them the opportunity to transfer to higher paying sections, while not providing the same opportunity to older workers. Visit website for more details.
The lawyers will also compile comments and documents that lead to a hostile workplace for older workers. Managers are not permitted to tell workers over 40 that they are too old to learn new computer skills. They are not allowed to make jokes that the older worker would never be able to walk up the stairs to get to the class or remember the name of the instructor. While an occasional joke is permitted, these comments should not be a regular means of communication. Lawyers will know how to distinguish between an innocent joke and a pattern of discrimination.
They will even review the employment ads that the company posts. These advertisements cannot discriminate against older workers. One common tactic is to limit the number of years of experience that will be accepted. For example, a company may state that they want someone with less than 10 years of experience.
Connor, Morneau & Olin is a Northampton law firm that represents older workers. People can visit their website to learn more.
