Legal Question in Employment Law in Illinois

Termination

I was terminated due to elimination of position and company financial difficulties. They told me that they will have to do without that position for at least 5 months. In less than 1 month they posted a position in the same dept with almost 2x the pay, they changed title from manager to director. the problem is they have done this to numerous employees within the last 2 years. I was in HR and each time they did let someone go for elimination of position I was told to post the same position but different title. The other problem is that everyone they did this to is over 40. Is this practice legal?


Asked on 10/17/08, 11:25 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Elisabeth Efird Efird and Associates

Re: Termination

Based on the information you have provided there is more than enough to examine whether or not there is an age discrimination case. Under Title VII or the Illinois Human Rights Act, employers can not discriminate against an employee based on their age. If a company is making a systemic practice of replacing older employees with younger ones, solely due to their age, it is a violation of both laws. To prove this you would need to show the similar job descriptions and the fact that it appears that there is no other reason but discrimination for the employer's actions. You should talk to an attorney in more detail about your case and the other cases you saw while working in HR. Further, you need to make sure there is enough employees with the company so that the law applies.

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Answered on 10/17/08, 6:37 pm


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