Los Angeles Age Discrimination Lawyer
Employee Rights Attorney Group provides a personal approach to helping those who have faced age discrimination at work in Los Angeles. Our skill and expertise in age discrimination law, along with our aggressive and effective representation, will set you up for the best chances of success.
Do not feel intimated by your employer’s efforts to legitimize indefensible actions against you. Together we will build a strong case on your behalf that will discredit your employer’s attacks, and collect the compensation you deserve.
Do you Need an Age Discrimination Attorney?
Speak to an age discrimination lawyer as soon as you start to feel you’re being discriminate against because of your age. There is no need to wait until you are fired.
For some, their job is taken away in one swift blow. Corporations are also known to take their time in phasing older people out. Tactics like making conditions intolerable to force you to quit, and/or papering your file to smear your reputation to justify the inevitable termination are common. Consulting with an attorney early may neutralize the hostility or at least help you build your own file of evidence. If you were wrongfully terminated, call our team at your earliest opportunity.
What is Age Discrimination?
Age discrimination is an act of holding an individual’s age against him or her. It occurs when you are denied equal treatment and opportunity because of your age.
Why Age Discrimination Happens
Ageism in the workplace will inevitably affect every person. The older you get the more likely you may be confronted with the fact that your years of experience, which were once an asset, hold you back from your career. There isn’t just one reason. Age discrimination is motivated by irrational biases and stereotypes against older individuals viewing them as slow, unmotivated, or less effective regardless of his or her actual job performance and commitment.
Employers also seek to cut spending by replacing older individuals with substantially younger individuals for less pay and less costly health benefits.
Thousands of Age Discrimination Cases are Reported to EEOC Each Year
Age discrimination cases make up around 20% of discrimination cases filed each year, making it one of the most common types of workplace discrimination. Yet, age discrimination is also one of the more difficult types of cases to prove, making it imperative to have an expert employee rights attorney who is qualified to fight on your behalf.
Lead Attorney: Diana Gevorkian
Diana Gevorkian is the lead attorney at the Employee Rights Attorney Group. She’s helped many workers seek the justice they deserve from discrimination in the workplace including age discrimination.
With herself and the team at Employee Rights Attorney Group, you can rest assured that your case is in good hands.
What Qualifies as Age Discrimination in Los Angeles?
Below are some examples of age related discrimination:
California and Federal law prohibit discrimination against employees 40 years or older by making it illegal for an employer to do any of the following:
- Replacing an older employee with a substantially younger employee with equal or inferior qualifications.
- Refusing to hire or promote an older employee because of his or her age
- Harassing older employees.
- Implementing policies that negatively impact individuals 40 years or older. For example, it is generally illegal to require mandatory retirement pursuant to a pension or retirement plan. With few exceptions, employees who still have the desire and ability to work must be allowed to remain in their jobs beyond any arbitrary retirement age/date in a private plan.
However, neither California nor Federal law covers “reverse age discrimination.” Meaning, employees under the age of 40 cannot sue for age discrimination against them that favors older employees.
Retaliation for Objecting to Age Discrimination is Illegal
It is also illegal for an employer to punish you for:
- Complaining of age discrimination
- Filing an age discrimination claim with an administrative agency like the DFEH or EEOC.
- Participating as a witness in an age discrimination investigation.
- Standing up for others is also protected activity.
- Employers are also prohibited from firing and disciplining employees/supervisors who refuse to carry out actions motivated by age discrimination.
Proving Age Discrimination
You may be able to prove age discrimination if you demonstrate:
- You were 40 years old or older;
- You were performing competently in your position;
- You suffered an adverse employment action (e.g., termination, demotion, hostile work environment); and
- You were either replaced by substantially younger employees with equal or inferior qualifications or discharged/suffered an adverse action under circumstances otherwise giving rise to an inference of discrimination.
Evidence that younger employees received more favorable treatment is also relevant. To show “more favorable treatment,” it is not necessary to prove that you were replaced by a younger worker. It may be enough if the significantly younger person got perks that you were denied.
For example, if you are criticized or reprimanded for actions that younger employees engage in without consequence. Age related comments may also constitute direct evidence of discriminatory motive. Learn more about proving age discrimination.
Age Discrimination FAQ
What are the signs of age discrimination?
- Change of behavior towards you, while favoring younger counterparts
- You are next in line for promotion but your employer hires a substantially younger outsider with equal or lesser qualifications than you.
- Your employer asks you to train a younger employee. Then fires you and replaces you with your trainee.
- Your complaints of age discrimination are ignored.
- New management/supervisor begins to phase out older employees.
- Ageist comments.
How to deal with age discrimination at work?
Document. Document. Document. Gather documents and communications that support your complaint. Keep in touch with individuals who were treated in the same manner. Corporations are often repeat offenders. If there is an investigation, this information will be useful. Escalate your complaints if your employer has an effective complaint process in place.
What is the average settlement for age discrimination?
There is no average estimate for an age discrimination lawsuit. Each case settles or prevails on its own facts. The more evidence and damages you have the more you can expect. For example, a man fired in his 60s may face more difficulty finding a job than a man fired in his 40s. Hence, the older you are, the more likely you have substantial economic damages.
Since different employees earn different salaries/wages, the loss of salary, benefits, etc., is different in every case. Other factors that are relevant to the value of a case include whether the termination was motivated by malice, whether you were a long-term employee, and the extent of the discriminatory treatment. Another factor impacting damages is whether you signed an enforceable Arbitration Agreement. Our goal is to obtain full justice on your behalf, regardless of your circumstances.
Nothing herein is a guarantee or estimate of any outcome.
