Summary
Section 201 of the Congressional Accountability Act (CAA) provides that all personnel actions affecting covered employees 40 years old or older shall be free from discrimination based on age. The CAA only protects individuals who are at least 40 years old against discrimination. Individuals younger than 40 are not protected.
The law generally forbids the use of age as a motivating factor in personnel actions, such as hiring, discharge, promotion, pay, or benefits. A covered employee over 40 may also assert that he or she is harassed because of age if certain conduct creates a hostile work environment or interferes with an individual's work performance.
There is no single test for determining whether age was a motivating factor in an alleged discriminatory action, but instead, proving motivation will depend on the facts of the individual case. For example, placing a phrase like "age 25-50" or "young" or "college student" in a help-wanted notice or advertisement may be evidence of discriminatory motive. Furthermore, a covered employee must prove that he or she was treated differently from others in similar circumstances and that age was a motivating factor in that treatment.
There are several exceptions to the general prohibition on age discrimination. The employing office must prove that the conditions for a particular exception have been met.
