Who won this case? Was ‘overqualified’ code for ‘too old’?
June 11, 2008 by Sam NarisiPosted in: Assessing the right candidate, In This Week's E-Newsletter, Latest News & Views, Law
A candidate is turned down for a position because his experience extends far beyond what the company is looking for. Is that age discrimination? Read the facts of this real-life case and decide: Who won?
The facts: A company advertised an opening, saying it was looking for someone with five to seven years of relevant experience. A man sent in a resume, even though he’d worked in similar jobs for roughly 30 years. He was told he wasn’t a good fit for the position, and someone who fit the ideal range was hired instead. The man sued, claiming he was turned down because of his age.
The employer said: Like the HR rep told the candidate, he wasn’t the right fit because he was overqualified. The company didn’t want to hire someone at his level to do the basic work the job required. The fact that having more experience also meant that he was older than the person who got the job was incidental, and not the motivation for turning him down.
Who won? The employer.
Why: The court ruled that the company’s reasoning was legit. There are good reasons for not wanting to hire an overqualified candidate, and the man failed to prove that his age was the real motivator.
Courts have routinely turned down claims that finding someone to be overqualified is an automatic indicator of age discrimination. Many have acknowledged that the term can be used as a cover for discrimination. But when companies can show a legitimate business reason for turning someone down, they’re usually in the clear.
Cite: Reeves v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc.
Tags: adea, age discrimination, overqualified, work experience
June 9th, 2008 at 2:42 pm
Yes. It happens and rather frequently. However, the offenders often do not know that they are engaged in this activity. Inappropriate behavior and off-hand remarks will sneak up to bite you. As a corporate director for a fortune 500 company, I have been blindsided many times by disparaging remarks made by your management team? The managers don’t realize at the time that they are in a discrimination mode. I detail these likely events in my management book, Wingtips with Spurs. Usually they will ‘get it’ when their depositions start. When you hear the following phrases, stop the offender, offer some education, and hope to goodness no one else heard them. If it happens again with the same person, it may be time to sell the cow. The courts and juries will decide if the remarks are ‘stray comments’ or direct evidence of a discrimination mindset.
• “We need sharp, young people.”
• “We need people who can come in early and stay late.”
• “They’re dinosaurs.”
• “They’re too old to learn something new”
• “We want employees who are young, lean, and mean.”
• “They wouldn’t be able to keep up with the fast company
growth.”
• “We’re looking for longevity.”
• “We need some young blood in this department.”
If a manager allows a culture that tolerates remarks such as the ones above, then the manager will probably get what he or she is asking for. The great leader will remind management on a frequent basis that they should never forget silence is often the best answer. Michael L. Gooch, SPHR http://www.michaellgooch.com