As I’ve mentioned before, I’m job hunting. I got an email today from a recruiting agency. The subject line read “Hip and Trendy Web Agency needs C# developers!”
The text continued with the following (bolding added):
HIP AND TRENDY WEB SITE AGENCY LOOKING FOR BRIGHT **YOUNG ** WEB DEVELOPERS!!!
Now, if they have this attitude, I’m *certainly * not going to apply there. But is it even legal to make such a statement? The company is in New York City. I took a quick look at the New York State Division of Human Rights web site, and they describe a detailed process for making a complaint, but nothing along the lines of “report this discrimination.”
IANAL, not even close, and this is laughably far from legal advice.
I think it is. You should call one of the offices of the New York State Division of Human Rights. That’s what you’re supposed to do to file a complaint.
We really need more people who aren’t willing to let stuff like this slide.
I am an HR person, but not a lawyer. Yes, this is prohibited by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which applies to employment agencies and to employers with 20 or more employees.
Here is what the Age Discrimination in Employment Act explicitly prohibits employers from doing
(e) It shall be unlawful for an employer, labor organization, or
employment agency to print or publish, or cause to be printed or
published, any notice or advertisement relating to employment by such an
employer or membership in or any classification or r eferral for
employment by such a labor organization, or relating to any classification
or referral for employment by such an employment agency, indicating any
preference, limitation, specification, or discrimination, based on age.
Thanks. I guess I will call the NY Division of Human Rights. Of course, I don’t want to file an actual claim, since I definitely don’t want the advertised job.
Well, that’s annoying. According to the NYDHR, if I want anything done, I have to file a formal complaint, in person.
Then there’s an entire process, including conciliation efforts. Personally, I don’t want any conciliation. I certainly don’t want to work with the agency that openly says it only wants young people.
I don’t think it’s illegal because “young” is a relative term. It doesn’t say “people under the age of 30,” or anything like that. They could say that by “young” they’re referring to a potential employee’s attitude, etc.
I think what annoys me is the fact that older people really ARE discriminated against in subtle ways when it comes to employment. One can leave the dates of high school and college graduation off the resume, one can even leave all dates off the resume. But sooner or later, there will be a face-to-face, and in the competitive job market, the 20- or 30-something will be preferred over the 50-something. We all know it. We can emphasize our strong track record, our pattern of staying with a job for years, our reliability, our work ethic. We can dye our hair, wear becoming clothing, and so on. But very often the potential employer just wants a younger person than we are, and there is little we can do about it. “We hired a person who more closely fits our needs.” Unless they come right out and say, “You’re too old for this job,” or “We want someone not so close to retirement,” you can’t prove a thing.
Now, here is a company that is outright saying “We want young people.” It’s so blatant, and so unnecessary. If they can get away with this, the very idea of reducing the more intangible discrimination is impossible.
Not that there’s anything wrong with young people – some of my best friends are young people.
Come to Britain! Both parents now - or shortly will - qualify for natal leave. So older farts like me who won’t be buggering off for 3-12 months will be in like Flynn.