Age discrimination is when an employer puts an employee at a disadvantage unjustifiably due to reasons related to age. It is illegal under the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act and California law. Workplace protections are there to help you thrive in your career.
Age discrimination has many consequences, including loneliness, increased isolation, poor mental health, financial insecurity, and poor quality of life. You need to hire a Los Angeles age discrimination lawyer when you suffer age discrimination.
At Fraigun Law Group, our skilled team will help you gather evidence to prove age discrimination in your workplace. Our Los Angeles employment law attorney is experienced and aggressive and will give your case the best chances of success.
Reach out to us today at 818-981-1800 for a free consultation and to book an appointment.
What Constitutes Age Discrimination in the Workplace?
Unfortunately, a significant number of individuals suffer age discrimination in the workplace but never get to report the incidences. One of the main reasons for so many cases going unreported is a lack of good knowledge of what qualifies as age discrimination. Here is what qualifies as age discrimination:
- Direct Discrimination refers to any behavior directed to an employee that causes them to be at a disadvantage due to their age.
- Indirect Discrimination refers to any provision, criteria, or practices that cause an employee to be disadvantaged against their peers based on age.
- Associative Discrimination refers to the unfavorable treatment of an employee because of their association with other employees of a different age range.
- Perceptive Discrimination refers to a situation where employees are discriminated against because they are perceived to be part of a specific age range.
- Retaliation refers to an employee being demoted, fired, or otherwise penalized for raising an age discrimination claim.
At The Fraigun Law Group, we help you collect evidence of age discrimination and identify the types of age discrimination you suffered. We are here to ensure you can identify the type of age discrimination you have suffered and help you make a successful claim.
Understanding The Age Discrimination in Employment Act
The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) was formulated to take care of the many age discrimination cases that were going unaddressed at workplaces. It protects employees who are 40 years of age or above 40 years.
The act, however, does not allow employees at or over 40 to file an age discrimination claim just because they got dismissed. It requires that any employee filing an age discrimination act prove beyond doubt that they were unfairly dismissed based on age.
It has never been easy for employees to prove discrimination based on age. Through years of experience in proving age discrimination, you can be sure that we will help you prove your claim using the ADEA claims basic requirements.
Age Discrimination: Causes & Statistics
There are several reasons behind age discrimination. Notably, some individuals get into acts of age discrimination unconsciously.
According to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), 44% of employees in California report that they have experienced age discrimination directly or indirectly at work. Further, 36% of the employees feel that after turning 40, their age is the major factor behind their joblessness.
Some of the common causes of age discrimination include:
Individual Factors
Studies show that individuals are likely to discriminate against others based on their age due to their mindset, personality, and health status. Extroverted, highly agreeable, and cooperative individuals are less likely to have ageist beliefs.
Societal Factors
A high percentage of older people in the community and scarce resources are the main factors behind age discrimination in most societies. Most populations tend to believe that it is the older people who use up most of the resources.
Interpersonal Factors
Individuals are more likely to face age discrimination if they live in a society where the media portrays ageism as socially acceptable.
People who have positive interactions with older adults are less likely to participate in age discrimination. Finally, individuals who lack strong personal relationships with their grandparents are more likely to discriminate against others based on age.
Age Discrimination Can Be Subtle, a Los Angeles Employment Law Attorney Can Help
The dynamics of an age discrimination claim make it necessary to hire a Los Angeles age discrimination lawyer. An experienced lawyer will help you easily prove age discrimination, counter your employer’s defense, and ensure you get the right compensation for damages caused.
It is difficult to prove employment-related age discrimination which is why you must work with a lawyer. You must show that if it were not for your age, you would have received favorable treatment or gotten a job offer. Employers make it even harder since they do not provide clear-cut discrimination standards.
Compensating for the damage caused is something your employer will never do willingly. To avoid paying you, the employer will devise a defense that only a professional age discrimination attorney can effectively counter. Even when the court decides you should be compensated, you still need a lawyer to ensure you get the right compensation.
Age-Based Harassment
Age-based harassment refers to the act of intimidating an individual based on their age. Some examples of age harassment include:
- Disrespectful age-related comments about a victim
- Disrespectful age-related jokes about a victim
- Disrespectful age-related remarks about a victim or older employee
- Comments on preference for younger workers
- Less favorable treatment of an employee compared to younger workers
- Any negative conduct motivated by an employee’s age, whether physical or verbal
Age-based harassment can support an age discrimination claim while also giving rise to a separate claim for age-based harassment. According to California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and the US laws, employees have a right to work in an environment free from discrimination and intimidation based on age. Age-based harassment creates a hostile environment.
How to Prove Age Discrimination in Los Angeles
Proving age discrimination is an uphill task. Some of the types of evidence you can use to prove age discrimination include:
- Proving that the employee was over 40 when they were terminated
- Proving that the employee was meeting all job requirements before termination
Further, any of the below actions must have been committed due to age:
- Dismissing or terminating the employee
- Suspending the employee
- Refusing to employ an individual
- Demoting the employee
- Refusal to take steps against age discrimination
- Discriminating the employee in terms of employment, compensation, privileges of employment, or conditions of employment because they are over 40.
Trying to prove these factors will be tiresome if you do not have the right knowledge. At Fraigun Law Group, we are dedicated to helping you prove your claim beyond doubt as a way of helping you access justice.
Get Help From a Top Los Angeles Age Discrimination Lawyer!
Age discrimination together with gender discrimination and racial discrimination are common employment-related issues. Winning an age discrimination case requires in-depth knowledge of the Los Angeles legal processes. However, you do not have the luxury of time to learn the procedures and employ them in your case.
At The Fraigun Law Group, we have years of experience in employment-related issues. Do not let age discrimination affect your productivity at work. Call our dedicated employment law firm today at 818-981-1800 to schedule a free consultation with a top Los Angeles age discrimination lawyer.
