Age Discrimination Case Study

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Ethics can be defined as the basic concepts and fundamental principles of human conduct. Ethics refer to the judgements in which people make, furthermore, it is the process by which people make value-based decisions. The following selected ethical issue undoubtedly states that the worker is being forced to work late shifts out of her allocated hours, in spite of being a full-time student. Additionally, the manager is trying to force an employee out of their job so that she can hire a 15-year-old who will be a cheaper alternative. It is apparent that the issue is based on age discrimination and equal opportunity, as the employer’s treatment towards the employee’s differentiates based on age. The manager is entitled to hire any individual whom …show more content…

The anti-discrimination legislation, the Age Discrimination Act 2004, which is the most recent, intends to ensure that all Australians of any age are treated justly with equal opportunity. According to the Age Discrimination Act 2004 “The Act also provides for positive discrimination – that is, actions which assist people of a particular age who experience a disadvantage because of their age”. The age discrimination within a workplace can be clearly explained by a case where age discrimination is evident, Elizabeth is a 17-year-old who was employed by a recreational centre as a customer service attendant on a casual basis. She claimed she had not been given shifts for approximately four months because she had been replaced by a younger worker. As the following employee has been replaced by someone younger, the employer is discriminating Elizabeth in the reason of her age. Consequently, Elizabeth filed a complaint, as the manager’s choice of action was unjust. The complaint was resolved through conciliation with an agreement that the employee will still be employed and transferred to work in a different branch of the company. The employer must take reasonable care of their workers in terms of health and safety. Providing the employer does not do the following, the manager could …show more content…

Personally, I would not react to anything which I am being told to do. Instead, I will contact the union, reporting the bullying and harassment towards the employee by the manager and I would also support the individual who is being harassed as everyone deserves to be treated in a nice manner. In reference to the Age Discrimination Act, everyone should be treated equally, which evidently supports why I would make this situation because in terms of ethics everyone has the right to work. This demonstrates my personal integrity as I understand right from wrong and practice it in the following actions. My choice of action involves moral judgment, character, honesty and most importantly leadership values. Although the decision I would make is beneficial, this can be difficult in terms of talking to the manager, and can possibly be further mistreated by the

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