Mandatory Retirement ~Losing job in 2 months

[tngoose2]

Tennessee

I am writing on behalf of my mother who is 76 years of age. She works part-time in a mothers day out program at her church and has done so now for the past 7 years. Last week the Minister of Administration met with my mother, along with 4 other women of the church, over 70 years of age, to tell them there had been an oversight. The oversight was they had been allowed to work at the church past 70 years of age and now they were being forced to retire and given notice their jobs would end Jan. 1, 2010. The Minister referred to the Personnel Manual, of which none of these women were given when they were hired, to point out the church's mandatory retirement age of 70. The Minister apologized and took full responsiblity for the oversight but, nonetheless, he had to let my mother go.

My mother is a widow, lives alone, and loves her job! Her job allows her a little extra income and helps her to remain independent. She is still very sharp and very active.

Does she have any recourse to this decision? If so, what?

Thanks for your help.What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[cbg]

Very, very, very important question, which makes ALL the difference to whether your mother has legal recourse or not:

She is employed directly by the church? If so, EXACTLY how many employees, TOTAL (full and part time both) does the church have? If not, who is her employer, and how many employees do THEY have?

I'm not talking about just the program she works for; I mean the employer as a whole.

There is a specific law that addresses this issue, and if it applies it is favorable to your mother, but whether it applies or not depends on the number of employees her employer has.

 

[commentator]

She needs to contact the EEOC. Since the church day care is a non-profit, I truly don't know what will apply here. Some other folks here may be able to help.

There are some Older Worker programs operating for lower income people 55+ who want to work, administered through the Tennessee Career Center in the area where you live. The older workers are placed at something they can do in the public sector and work about 20 hours a week. Maybe she can see about this after her job ends. I think anyone who likes to keep working at this age needs to be rewarded and saluted! Personally, I'd like my child to be exposed to older workers in a day care situation. Maybe the church has run into liability issues with insurance or something.

She should, if let go at the end of the year as they say, apply for her unemployment. The church may be exempt, but it sounds as though they may have to pay if people are actually eligible, as it sounds as though they are letting several people go, and have several employees. It would be a very small amount, since her wages have all been part time, but would be better than nothing, and a little something to suppliment her income. Tennessee has recently changed the unemployment laws to say that a person who has been working part time can receive benefits even if they are only willing to accept other part time work. Of course she will say she is able and available for other part time jobs similar to what she has had. Income from Social Security or any other source is not a factor in whether one qualifies for unemployment.

 

[tngoose2]

Very, very, very important question, which makes ALL the difference to whether your mother has legal recourse or not:

She is employed directly by the church? If so, EXACTLY how many employees, TOTAL (full and part time both) does the church have? If not, who is her employer, and how many employees do THEY have?

I'm not talking about just the program she works for; I mean the employer as a whole.

There is a specific law that addresses this issue, and if it applies it is favorable to your mother, but whether it applies or not depends on the number of employees her employer has.

My mother is directly employed by the church. This a large church. While I do not know exactly the number of employees I will guess on the low range and say 150. Hope this helps you direct me further.

Thank you so much for replying.

 

[tngoose2]

She needs to contact the EEOC. Since the church day care is a non-profit, I truly don't know what will apply here. Some other folks here may be able to help.

There are some Older Worker programs operating for lower income people 55+ who want to work, administered through the Tennessee Career Center in the area where you live. The older workers are placed at something they can do in the public sector and work about 20 hours a week. Maybe she can see about this after her job ends. I think anyone who likes to keep working at this age needs to be rewarded and saluted! Personally, I'd like my child to be exposed to older workers in a day care situation. Maybe the church has run into liability issues with insurance or something.

She should, if let go at the end of the year as they say, apply for her unemployment. The church may be exempt, but it sounds as though they may have to pay if people are actually eligible, as it sounds as though they are letting several people go, and have several employees. It would be a very small amount, since her wages have all been part time, but would be better than nothing, and a little something to suppliment her income.

Thank you very much for your reply and suggestions. I was not aware of the Older Worker programs through the Tennessee Career Center. I will relay this info to her. My mother loves the job she has now and does not want to leave. However, she is not opposed to contacting the EEOC if necessary. I was also wondering if you knew whether Tennessee acts under the Mandatory Retirement Age law?