Age Discrimination Employment Act (ADEA)

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The Age Discrimination Employment Act (ADEA) only forbids age discrimination against people who are age 40 or older, it does not protect workers under the age of 40 (Age discrimination. (n.d.). There is another generation that is being discriminated toward and stereotyped emerging into the workplace that should be protected too. Many arguments can be made that it is no longer appropriate to exclude millennials and younger generations from the protection of the Age Discrimination Employment Act (ADEA). Age discrimination laws prevent discrimination based on race, sex, religion, national origin, physical disability, and age by employers (Employment discrimination. (2016). However, there is an emerging generation into today’s workforce who …show more content…

(2014, April). Specific protections that the ADEA offers is prohibiting employers from implying that a certain age is desired or preferred in a job posting (Age discrimination fact sheet. (2014, April). Employers cannot set an age limit for training programs (Age discrimination fact sheet. (2014, April). Punishing or retaliating against an employee who filed charges of ages discrimination is not allowed under ADEA laws and employers cannot force employees to retire (Age discrimination fact sheet. (2014, April). Millions of Americans benefit from these employment safe guards while the newest working generation remain unprotected from all of the stated protections. That generation is known as the …show more content…

This can often lead to employers firing, or not considering the younger generation when conducting the hiring process. Researchers believe there are several key reasons why employers feel this way. While growing up, Millennials were coached and expect their employers to be their coaches, rather than their bosses (O'Donnell, J. (2015, August 4). The Millennial generation is known for seeking professional development opportunity from their employers, many employers do not believe that it is their responsibility to financially support the development of their employees (O'Donnell, J. (2015, August 4). Millennials work to live, not live to work. The younger generation tends to push for work flexibility and only work within strict allotted time periods. This unwilling attitude to work longer than expected is undesirable to employers (O'Donnell, J. (2015, August 4). Millennials want “fun” working environments and often expect employers to provide desirable benefits (O'Donnell, J. (2015, August 4). These benefits may include amenities like gym memberships, healthy meals on-site, and in-house parties (O'Donnell, J. (2015, August 4). All of these “new age” concepts of what a work place should be like is earning the Millennial a bad reputation to employers. Regardless, that is no reason for an employer to overlook a job candidate or even fire an employee

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