As more people over 40 are searching for new jobs in this economy, managers need to be more careful about giving the impression of age bias. As one recent case shows, courts are letting more claims from rejected applicants proceed.
Read the facts of this real-life case and decide: Who won?
The facts:
A 50-year-old candidate applied for a job with the company. He claimed the hiring manager regarded him highly during a phone interview but changed attitudes when they met in person. According to the applicant, he repeatedly asked the manager several details about the job, but the manager refused to answer. After learning he didn’t get the job, he sued, believing his age was the real reason.
The employer said:
To fight the claim, the company pointed to the person who was hired: a 47-year-old woman. Given such a small difference, how could the applicant’s age have played a factor?
Who won the case?
Answer: The applicant.
Why: It didn’t matter to the judge that the two candidates were only three years apart. There’s no set standard about how big an age difference there needs to be for a bias claim to be successful.
The real issue is whether or not the man’s age played a role in the decision that was made about him. And in this case, the company couldn’t prove it didn’t.
Cite: D’Cunha v. Eckerd Corp.
