Hello Goodbye

By jobless and broke - 29/07/2015 18:40 - United States - Mesa

Today, I got fired from my new job on my first day. Why? Because I'm 19 and company policy says you have to be 21. But they can't ask how old you are. FML
I agree, your life sucks 26 122
You deserved it 2 448

Same thing different taste

Top comments

What kind of job isn't required to know your age?

What company was it? Seems a little strange.

Comments

Sounds like a useless outfit that couldn't find their own asses with a map and a team of guides to help them. You're better off out OP :-)

I had the same thing happen to me, when I was 17. I was working as a bank teller. They found out when they couldn't bond me. Hang in there 0P, it will get better.

EcoAirWarrior 7

Your employer is clearly either mentally deranged or unbelievably dim witted I'd write a complaint or report them for hypocritical policies.

Wth? That's the weirdest damn rule I've ever heard. What the heck?? Dude.

Not sure which rule you mean. The not allowed to ask age thing is so that employers can't exclude potential employees just because of their age. Needing to be 21 is a requirement in places that sell alcohol, and possibly firearms though I'm not sure about the age restriction there.

Usually the date of birth would be written on the application, but I guess if OP showed up and got the job without bringing one, the age thing could slip..

It is just as illegal in the USA to ask a person's age on the application or in an interview, as it is to ask a person's religion or nationality.

I've never had to write my birthdate on an application as employers can not legally ask you how old you are when applying/interviewing for a job. They can ask you if you are at least a certain age, based on certain restrictions such as serving alcohol, but it is illegal to ask for your specific age.

corky1992 33

every job I've ever applied to has asked for dob..

HR can ask for your dob as a means of verifying who you are and needing it for tax purposes, but the employer can not legally ask you how old you are. If it is a company where HR is the employer and they fire you because of your age when they see it, you can file for wrongful dismissal based on discrimination. Asking your specific age, religion, marital/family status, sexual orientation, etc. all fall into the same category when applying/interviewing for a job. They are not allowed to ask. I know some do, I've been asked, but they aren't allowed to.

Scorpio1691 29

That is probably one of the strangest policies I've ever seen.

They can't ask your age because the Civil Rights Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of age for people over age 40 (or suspicion of being over age 40 since suspicion of being in a protected class is also protected whether you are actually a member of that class or not). But they are allowed to discriminate against you based on your age if you are under 40. The company should've just asked if he was over 21 during the hiring process. But what they did is just weird, not illegal.

To the many saying age should have been asked on the application or in the interview, the minimum age should have been stated clearly in the ad/job description, but it is just as illegal in the USA to ask a person's age on the application or in an interview, as it is to ask a person's religion or nationality, and carries the same type of fines.

clickme 17

That seems a bit strange. Usually a job app requests birthdate. And when you turn in an I9 there's certainly a birthdate on that.

graceinsheepwear 33

I've never been asked my birthdate. That can be a basis for age discrimination.

When you fill out the forms for taxes, they need your dob to verify who you are. This should always be done after you have been hired, and in a larger company (one with an HR department), HR is the only entity entitled to this knowledge and it is not theirs to divulge to the employer. During the hiring process it is illegal to ask for a dob or an age in order to avoid discrimination.