Paternalistic Employers, Beware: EEOC Addresses Employer Concerns for Workplace Safety via Mandated Accommodations

Q&A H.1 provides that the Age Discrimination in Employment Act ("ADEA") prohibits employment discrimination against individuals age 40 and older; accordingly, the ADEA makes it illegal for an employer to involuntarily exclude employees 65 years or older on the basis of their age, even...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Employee Benefit Plan Review 2020-09, Vol.74 (6), p.15-17
Main Authors: Klein, Eve I, Gilbert, Sarah A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Age discrimination
Child care
Coronaviruses
COVID-19
Disability
Disease control
Employees
Employers
Employment discrimination
Handicapped accessibility
Illnesses
Labor law
Pregnancy
Responsibilities
Workforce
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Summary:Q&A H.1 provides that the Age Discrimination in Employment Act ("ADEA") prohibits employment discrimination against individuals age 40 and older; accordingly, the ADEA makes it illegal for an employer to involuntarily exclude employees 65 years or older on the basis of their age, even if such action comes from a place of genuine concern for the employee's safety. [...]the employee may be entitled to a reasonable accommodation under federal law for pregnancy and related medical conditions. An employer is free to consider these factors if they so choose in the provision of an accommodation, but the EEOC warns an employer should proceed with caution and avoid engaging in "disparate treatment" on some other protected EEO basis (e.g., declining to recall an employee because they have a disabled family member).
ISSN:0013-6808