Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/06/health/age-discrimination-ohio-state.html
Author: Logan Bronemann
Age discrimination in the work place is a serious problem in the United States that is vastly overlooked. Many employers don’t understand or simply don’t even know that age discrimination in the work place is actually against the law. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 is a US labor law that forbids employment discrimination against anyone at least 40 years of age. As two woman working at Ohio State University found out this law is not always up held in the work place. Julianne Taaffe and Kathryn Moon were subject to subpar work conditions such as forcing them out of their offices and sharing laptops in an attempt to force them into an early retirement. Ohio State University was looking to give jobs occupied by older employees to a younger generation of workers. They came together to file a law suit against their employers which is a lengthy process but they were willing to go for it in order to make a change and let the University know that they would not stand by while discriminated against. Ultimately after years of fighting the court sided with them and Taaffe was granted &203,000 and Moon received $237,000 as well as $325,000 in lawyer fees paid off.
This article is interesting to me because when you think of diversity in the work place age is almost always left off of the list of what makes a company diverse. I have personally seen age discrimination in the work place, while not to this extent, it still does exist. Many times it is just people talking down to someone of older age because they are having a harder time understanding technology or because they forget something and that fits nicely into the stereotype of old people. This article shows a big win for age discrimination activist allowing employers the chance to realize that it is something to be taken seriously and will not be tolerated in the work place. I also think that companies underestimate the power and diversity that people of older generations bring to the table. As the population of the United States is getting older they can provide valuable information, marketing strategies and important social skills for what could be the biggest demographic in the United States. These woman have shown that not only is the law going to remain to be upheld but also that people of older age have just as much if not more drive to work for things they believe in as a younger generation of people.
SOC101 