Law against age bias can't go in reverse, high court rules
By Associated Press
Published February 25, 2004
WASHINGTON - Age has its benefits, the Supreme Court said Tuesday, ruling that younger workers can't sue their employers when older colleagues get preferential treatment.
In a 6-3 decision that affects tens of millions of workers, the justices said the law that protects older employees from age discrimination doesn't apply in reverse.
The Supreme Court ruled in a case brought by about 200 General Dynamics Corp. workers who said they suffered reverse discrimination because they were too young to get benefits being offered to colleagues ages 50 and older
The workers, all in their 40s, sued General Dynamics when it changed its retirement benefits in 1997. Until then, longtime employees could retire and receive full health benefits. Under the new union contract only longtime workers 50 or older could get full health benefits after retirement.
The workers claimed they were protected by the 1967 Age Discrimination in Employment Act, which forbids age discrimination of any worker 40 or older.
But the court said the law "does not mean to stop an employer from favoring an older employee over a younger one."
