Age discrimination a growing issue in a difficult economy

“The burden of proof is on the employee or individual to show that age, race, gender, etc. was a factor that made a difference in his or her treatment," O'Brien noted of alleged discrimination cases. “We call it the 'but for' standard – in other words, ‘but for' age discrimination, the person would have been hired, promoted or not terminated. That’s not an easy standard to prove, because typically the employer is going to present evidence of some other performance and behavior problem."

“It’s challenging to prove ‘failure to hire’ based on age discrimination,” O’Brien continued. “The complainant would have to demonstrate that he or she was equal to or superior to the chosen applicant but somehow discriminated against because of age. That’s a pretty large hurdle and probably the reason we don’t see a lot of hiring cases."

Robert doesn’t plan to file an age-discrimination complaint because he can’t document a specific instance of illegal bias.

“I’ll just keep on submitting applications in the hopes that someone will get beyond my age and recognize a talented – and obviously experienced – potential employee,” he said.

Curt Burnett is a professional writer/communicator whose various incarnations have included Deseret News reporter, Senate press secretary and Vice President of Public Affairs for Questar Corporation.