According to data from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity (EEOC), 12,965 charges of age discrimination were filed in 2021 alone. And while there has been a noticeable decrease in age discrimination charges since 2010, when 23,465 charges were filed with the EEOC, they do still happen.
And with an aging workforce, knowing how to prove that age discrimination is occurring can be helpful to individuals who may be dealing with it.
Below we take a look at how you can prove age discrimination in the workplace.
Age discrimination is defined as treating a current employee or potential applicant less favorably due to their age.
Under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), age discrimination is prohibited against all people who are age 40 or older. The ADEA does not protect workers under the age of 40 from age discrimination.
And one important note before we get to how to prove age discrimination is that age discrimination can occur between two individuals who are both over the age of 40.
The long and short answer here is yes, you can prove age discrimination.
Age discrimination cases exist at local and national levels of proven– including cases that we have taken on here at Coffman Legal, LLC.
A recent 2020 case saw proven age discrimination at the Supreme Court level when a former clinical pharmacist’s case was won after the case was initially thrown out.
Now that you know that you can prove age discrimination, we can dig into the how-to actually prove age discrimination.
First off, there is no singular form of age discrimination. It is a complex issue that can appear in a number of different ways in the workplace. Workers may even find it difficult to recognize. But here are a few examples of how age discrimination may appear:
To prove age discrimination in the workplace, there are a few different steps to keep in mind once you realize or believe you are dealing with age discrimination.
Evidence is going to be crucial to proving that you have been subjected to age discrimination – even before moving onto steps like speaking with an age discrimination lawyer or filing a charge.
So along with collecting the evidence as listed above, there are a few other things you can do to help strengthen your case in terms of evidence.
At the end of the day, strong evidence is going to go a long way to helping prove age discrimination.
To read more on age discrimination, see our post here.
Have you found yourself in a situation where you believe you are on the receiving end of age discrimination in the workplace? Consider reaching out to our experienced age discrimination lawyers at Coffman Legal, LLC today.
Our team of experienced Columbus age discrimination attorneys understands the importance of providing dedicated legal representation and counsel to all employees, no matter the industry they are working in.
We can help guide you through proving age discrimination in the workplace and the next steps. Reach out today over the phone at 614-949-1181 or schedule a consultation online.