News Notes: Jury Rules For Employer Who Fired Older Worker

An employer who discharged an older employee because she lacked modern computer skills was not guilty of illegal age discrimination, according to a Sacramento jury. Janet Davis, 49, worked in the accounting department of Yamas Control, Inc. Davis contended she was doing her job satisfactorily and had received several raises and favorable performance reviews. So when she was fired after 13 years with the company and replaced by a lower-paid younger employee, she sued for age discrimination. But Yamas argued Davis lacked modern accounting skills and resisted technological changes in the department. A jury found for the employer, relying on a recent Court of Appeal decision allowing employers to fire higher-earning employees over age 40 and replace them with lower-paid younger workers. Doing this is legal even if it negatively impacts older employees-so long as age discrimination is not the motive. Note that two bills pending in Sacramento would make it illegal to terminate an older worker because a younger employee could do the job at a lower salary.