Getting fired happens to almost everyone at
some time during their life. There are legitimate reasons for being fired,
others that aren't nice but not illegal, and there are of course, those
that are illegal. Age discrimination is illegal. But just
because you are over age 40 does not mean that you are
being discriminated against because of your age.
Many people have misconceptions about
termination of employment In many cases, there is nothing that the
employee has done wrong. Layoffs and business closings happen every
day. There are a million reasons why people lose their jobs, from the
obvious to the ridiculous. If you
believe that you are being discriminated against
because of your age, you should either contact the
EEOC or an attorney or both.
Many myths have been created about termination
and/or demotion:
Myth #1
You cannot be fired without a reasonable cause.
This is false. In most states,
most people work
"at will" with their employer, unless they belong to a union or have a
professional services agreement of some sort.
"At will" means that you both agree that you will
continue to work for that employer until one of you decides that you don't want
the arrangement anymore. You can quit for any reason and your employer can
fire you for any reason. Non-cause reasons you may be fired for
include:
| incompetence |
baldness |
nepotism |
| poor hygiene |
you are snooty |
your boss doesn't like you |
| you flirted with the bosses
secretary |
you are too young |
your bosses cousin doesn't
like you |
| you like the color green |
too beautiful |
you drive an old car |
| you die your hair |
too ugly |
almost anything else |
You can be fired for almost any reason with these
exceptions:
Performance contracts
If you have a employment contract for a
specific time or one that stipulates reasons for termination, your employer
probably cannot fire you except for "with cause". Performance contracts are not very common unless you
work for a union or your skills are at the top.
Most union contracts
(collective bargaining agreements) are different and
strongly address the terms, conditions, and procedures
under which you may be fired. Each contract varies
but they generally require notification to the union of
your dismissal, it may require a formal hearing, and there
can be other procedural issues that must be observed.
Performance contracts
generally require provable cause in order to fire
you. Theft, vandalism, fraud, skipping work, and
other similar things are examples of
"cause". However, most performance
contracts also specify certain levels of performance on
the job -- hence a performance contract. If you do
not perform as you agreed to (say reach a quota), the
employer can probably terminate your employment, even
though you have a contract.
Discrimination
Federal law prohibits the firing of any person
for several different reasons including:
- Age (over 40 only)
- Gender
- Race
- Religion
- National origin
- Disability
- Several other reasons may apply
Collecting disability or workman's
compensation
If you have been injured on the job and have
filed a claim, you cannot be fired for that reason.
Whistle-blower
If your employer was in violation of the law
and you report them, you may not be fired for that reason.
Other than these areas of business, you can be
fired for almost any reason. If you were fired for reasons listed above,
you may have a legal case against that employer. The problem in most cases
is that it can be hard to prove your contention.
People are fired for illegal reasons every
day. But few employers are going to admit doing anything illegal. In
order to prove this, it would probably be essential to either have an impartial witness
or prove a pattern of doing the same thing and establishing credible evidence of
the reason that it happened. In other words, all senior employees may be
fired because they earn too much, but not because they are over age 40.
Myth #2
If only one person
is fired, it's not age discrimination.
This is not
true. Age discrimination against one person is
just as illegal as it is when committed against
hundreds or thousands of people.
Providing evidence to
your allegation of age discrimination is always
necessary. Age discrimination does not exist
simply because you are over age 40 and were
fired. You must have been fired because
you are over age 40 in order to prove age
discrimination.
Employers who
discriminate based on age are generally not going to
volunteer that what they have committed an illegal
employment termination. Showing a pattern of
termination older employees can become part of the
proof you need and is often necessary if there is no
other proof available. Just showing that older
employees are far more likely to be terminated can be
all the proof you need to win an age discrimination
case.
Where no such pattern
exists, age discrimination can still be proved but
it's harder. You have to have more evidence than
your allegations. This would include witness
testimony that termination was at least partly
attributable to age, proof that the employer's stated
reason for firing you was blatantly and knowingly
wrong, or official company intent to terminate
employment because of age.
