How to File a Claim With the Age Discrimination in Employment Act

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) was passed in 1967 to prohibit age discrimination in employees 40 years of age and older. The law was passed to address problems older individuals faced, such as retirement cutoffs and hiring discrimination.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Internet
• Phone

1. Determine if your employer is covered. The ADEA covers employees who work for a private employer with 20 or more employees. It also covers employees working for the state and local government, employment agencies and labor unions.

2. Determine if you are covered. All employees of regulated employers are covered, provided that the employee is at least 40 years old. Those who are younger than 40 do not have rights under the ADEA.

3. To file a complaint, contact the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission at [phone]. Deadlines for filing a charge depend on whether the state has an antidiscrimination law. Employees working in states without an antidiscrimination law have 180 days to complain. Employees in states with an antidiscrimination law have 300 days to make their complaint.

4. Employees also can file a lawsuit against the employer. To file a lawsuit, the employee must obtain a "right to sue" letter from the EEOC.

Tips & Warnings

• Penalties under the ADEA include compensation for lost wages and benefits or requiring the employer to take actions to correct the discrimination--rehiring the worker, for example-. Liquidation damages and paying employee's court costs also are penalties under the ADEA.

References

• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; Facts About Age Discrimination
• "The Essential Guide to Federal Employment Laws;" Lisa Guerin & Amy DelPo; 2009