Riverside Age Discrimination Lawyer
Fighting for Worker Rights Across Southern California
Discrimination comes in many forms. It is not limited to terminating an employee based on their race, or gender, or sexual orientation. In California and under federal law, it is illegal to take adverse employment action against an employee based on their advanced age. An employer may be guilty of unlawful age discrimination if they refuse to hire an employee, fire an employee, deny an employee a promotion, or permit an employee to be subjected to a hostile work environment as a result of their age. If you or someone you know has experienced age discrimination in the workplace, it is time to speak up.
The Riverside age discrimination attorneys at Ochoa & Calderon are ready to investigate your workplace age discrimination claims, gather evidence to build your strongest case, and hold your employer accountable for their unlawful behavior. If you have been fired, harassed, or held back at a job because of your age, you might be entitled to compensation for the harm you have been put through. Our Southern California employment discrimination legal team is ready to help.
California and Federal Laws Prohibiting Age Discrimination
There are federal and state laws that prohibit age discrimination. Different employees may or may not be covered by each law depending on the size of their employer, their age, and the nature of their position at their place of work.
The federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA) protects employees who are aged 40 or over from acts of discrimination based on their age. The ADEA applies to all private employers with 20 or more employees, as well as state and local government offices, employment agencies, labor organizations, and the federal government. The ADEA applies to current job holders and job applicants.
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) protects all workers aged 40 and over who work for employers with at least five employees. FEHA applies to private employers as well as state and local government offices. FEHA tends to be more protective of employee rights than the ADEA, so, where it is available, it is the preferred vehicle for age discrimination claims.
Types of Age Discrimination
Age discrimination can arise in many different contexts. While the quintessential discrimination claim arises from being terminated as a result of age, there are many other examples of conduct that may give rise to an age discrimination claim. Conduct that can constitute age discrimination includes, but is not limited to:
- Being fired or forced to quit because of your age
- Not being hired because of your age
- Offered an inferior position or lower benefit because of age
- Being overlooked for a promotion or a favorable position (such as a choice relocation) because of your age
- Being denied training or other opportunities for advancement because of age
- Being denied benefits because of age
- Negative performance reviews that are actually related to your age (such as assertions that you are “unable to keep up with the times” or “unable to learn new technology”)
Proving Age Discrimination
Proving age discrimination can be difficult. The seasoned age discrimination attorneys at Ochoa & Calderon look for a wide range of evidence pointing to patterns or practices of age discrimination, including:
- Supervisors or coworkers making age-related comments, such as calling an employee slow, out of touch, or unable to adapt, before taking an adverse employment action
- A history of failing to hire or promote employees over a certain age, or a pattern of hiring only younger employees when older, qualified employees are available in the workforce
- A pattern of replacing older workers with new, younger workers, regardless of the qualifications and experience of the respective workers
- Older workers disproportionately hit with layoffs, furloughs, or other staff reductions
- Younger workers receiving preferential treatment in pay, benefits, work conditions, promotions, or other factors
- Evidence of disparate treatment of younger and older workers under corporate policies, such as older workers being subjected to discipline when younger workers are permitted to get away with the same conduct
Age Discrimination Attorneys Serving Riverside and Southern California
If you have been fired or otherwise subjected to an adverse employment action as a result of your advanced age, reach out to Ochoa & Calderon for a free consultation. We take appropriate cases on a contingency fee basis, meaning we only charge a fee if we are successful on your behalf, and our fees come as a percentage of the amount we recover for you. You’ve got nothing to lose by calling now, but you could miss out on enforcing your legal rights if you wait too long. Call us at 951-901-4444 in Riverside or throughout Southern California at 844-401-0750. Our California employment discrimination lawyers are ready to fight for you.
