EEOC AMENDS AGE BIAS REGULATIONS TO CONFORM WITH SUPREME COURT RULING

WASHINGTON  -- The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today issued revised  regulations on age discrimination in the workplace in accordance with a 2004  Supreme Court decision, General Dynamics  Land Systems, Inc. v. Cline. The  updated regulations, published in today’s Federal Register, are available on www.eeoc.gov.

  The  revised regulations clarify that the Age Discrimination in Employment Act  (ADEA) does not prohibit employers from favoring an older employee over a  younger one when both are protected by the Act.  The EEOC initially proposed these changes in 2006 and, after receiving  public comments on its proposal, unanimously voted to approve the  revisions. The public comments were  largely supportive of the revisions, with both business and labor groups supporting  the changes.

“With the  graying of the American workforce, the ADEA has become more relevant than ever  to both employers and employees,” said EEOC Chair Naomi C. Earp. “These revisions harmonize the Commission’s  age discrimination regulations with the Supreme Court’s ruling in Cline, which clarified the law on this  question. The decision, along with the  revised regulations, will aid the EEOC in its enforcement efforts.”

The ADEA  protects individuals who are 40 years of age or older from employment  discrimination based on age. The ADEA’s protections apply to  both employees and job applicants. Under the ADEA, it is  unlawful to discriminate against a person because of his/her age with respect  to any term, condition, or privilege of employment, including hiring, firing,  promotion, layoff, compensation, benefits, job assignments, and training. The ADEA  applies to employers with 20 or more employees, including state and local  governments. It also applies to employment agencies and labor organizations, as  well as to the federal government.

The EEOC enforces federal laws  prohibiting employment discrimination. Further  information about the EEOC and the laws it enforces is available on its web  site at www.eeoc.gov.