Human Resource Blog

Age Discrimination in Kansas

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I’m a manager in

Kansas. I’m tired of immature employees, and want to hire only applicants who are over the age of 25. Is this age discrimination under any law?

What you are proposing is probably age discrimination under Kansas law. Kansas is one of just a handful of states that prevents age discrimination for people under 40.

The Kansas Age Discrimination in Employment Act applies to every employer with 4 or more employees. The law protects all workers aged 18 or older from discrimination based solely on age. Violations of this law are investigated by the Kansas Human Rights Commission.

In some situations, the courts have recognized that age can be a bona fide occupational qualification. This means that in certain occupations, usually involving public safety, age can be used as a reason for disqualification. This works both for older employees and for younger ones. Some courts have found that police departments were justified in hiring only applicants who were over the age of 21. They have also upheld company policies that required airline pilots to retire at the age of 65.

Some federal jobs are exempt from this state statute.

Hiring only employees over 25 would not be age discrimination under federal law. The federal age discrimination laws prevent employers from discriminating against workers who are 40 years old or older. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA)  prohibits job discrimination based solely on age, but it applies only to individuals who are 40 years old or older. Under this law, employers may not discriminate in hiring, wages, promotion, training, layoffs, harassment or in any working condition against an employee solely based on his or her age.

The ADEA applies to employers with 15 or more employees, including private businesses, government agencies, unions and employment agencies.

The federal Age Discrimination Act of 1975 extends similar protection to employees of most agencies receiving federal funding. The Age Discrimination Act prohibits age discrimination in programs and activities receiving federal financial assistance. The Act would apply, for example, to hospitals, nursing homes, day care centers and other social service providers. It is illegal for persons to be excluded from participation in, to be denied the benefits of, or to be subjected to discrimination in these programs and activities because of age.