WASHINGTON – Last night, Congressman Dave Joyce (OH-14) voted for H.R. 1230, the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act. This bipartisan legislation aims to restore fairness to our nation’s older workers by ensuring that they do not have to jump through over-burdensome legal hoops when they have been subjected to employment discrimination.

“It’s crazy to me that we have Ohioans who are willing and able to be participating members of the workforce who cannot work simply because they are judged on their age rather than their skills,” said Dave. “Any form of employment discrimination not only hurts the hardworking families of our local communities, but also our nation’s economy. That’s why I was proud to join my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in ensuring our older constituents have a level playing field when it comes to battling age discrimination in the workplace.”

“AARP applauds Representative David Joyce for his work to pass bipartisan legislation to help fight age discrimination in the workplace,” said AARP Senior Vice President of Government Affairs Bill Sweeney. “Older workers are a valuable asset to their employers and the economy, yet more than 6 in 10 report seeing or experiencing age discrimination on the job. We thank Rep. Joyce for cosponsoring and helping to pass this common-sense, bipartisan bill.”

Americans are working longer than ever before, with workers 65 and older now the fastest growing age group in the labor force. However, even though 50 years have passed since Congress outlawed the practice, age discrimination remains a significant and costly problem for workers, their families and our economy. According to AARP, more than six in 10 workers age 45 or older report that they have seen or experienced age discrimination in the workplace. When older workers lose their jobs, they often face age bias in hiring and are far more likely to experience longer spells of unemployment than younger workers. Specifically, H.R. 1230 aims to correct these wrongs by reinstating well-established legal standards on workplace discrimination that were undermined by past court cases, such as the Supreme Court’s 2009 decision in Gross v. FBL Financial. 

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