EEOC Age Discrimination Claims Jump -- After Trend Down

In a sharp reversal of a steady downward trend, the number of age-discrimination complaints has soared in the past 18 months, reflecting corporate America's determination to cut costs by weeding out many of its highest paid workers. Last year, as the economy began to cool, 16,000 people filed age-discrimination complaints with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, up 2,000 from the year before and the highest number since 1995. Complaints for the first six months of fiscal 2001 are up 15 percent from the same period last year, the EEOC says.

Underlying the increase in age-discrimination complaints, experts say, is a harsh new reality: As the economy slows, older workers are feeling more than their share of the pain. Perceived as less productive than younger employees and earning relatively high salaries, these workers are often targeted for termination or denied promotions, advocates say.


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