4 ms·

I want to believe these companies don't know it's illegal to discriminate based on age. Because the alternative is that they're intentionally discriminating --

I want to believe these companies don't know it's illegal to discriminate based on age. Because the alternative is that they're intentionally discriminating -- and thinking they won't get caught, because the ads are only appearing on Facebook. But any government agency that's investigating this can obviously just to ask Facebook for the company's ad buys, and there's an irrefutable paper trail. (It can't be that hard, since even Propublica was able to put all the pieces together without any special government powers.) Or is this a case where they're hoping Facebook's commitment to privacy for ad purchasers will end up shielding their illegal hiring practices?

e40 9y ago
I want to believe these companies don't know it's illegal to discriminate based on age. Are you serious? This is HR 101. There is no manager in the US that works for a company with an HR department (1 person is fine, that's all we have, and she's part time) could ever NOT know this.
- extrapickles 9y ago
  In the US, an employer is even required to put up posters saying that its illegal to discriminate on age.
yuhong 9y ago
Not that I like these laws anyway. they were really designed for manual labor and the like.
baddox 9y ago
Genuine question: is it explicitly illegal to discriminate in your outreach for job applications? Surely similar behavior happens all the time without as much outcry, like recruiting at college career fairs.
- e40 9y ago
  If you only look for employees in places with young people, that is likely illegal. It would take a pattern of this over time. If someone found out (e.g., an inside ratted you out), and a lawyer took it on contingency (because the company doing it has deep pockets), then it could be serious trouble.
- drewcon 9y ago
  This was my thought exactly. I'd like to know the answer to that. I think there's a difference b.w "we won't hire people over X yo for this job" and "90% of our applicants for this role are younger so we're just trying to spend our recruiting dollar in the most efficient way possible to reach those folks". Alternatively, they could simultaneously being running ads targeting employees of an older age with different messaging and content to get higher conversion. I'm interested to know at what point effective marketing crosses the line into discriminatory practice.
- TheSmiddy 9y ago
  At college career fairs you're selecting for people who are graduating with a relevant degree, there is no age requirements for attending college so a 55 year old who is just completing their bachelors could well be one of the people you recruit. Just because the environment you advertise in is inherently skewed young doesn't make it discrimination, explicitly preventing people of a certain age from seeing your ad is.
  - harryh 9y ago
    explicitly preventing people of a certain age from seeing your ad is. But that's not what "you" are doing. All these jobs are public. Every company in America has a jobs page that anyone of any age is free to look at. What you are doing is not paying money to force your ad in front of people in a certain age.
    - lionelione43 9y ago
      You bring up a good point. If you choose specifically to advertise to a specific demographic, can you be fined for NOT advertising to another? Is a company that puts a job offer ad in a men's or women's magazine breaking the law?
      - evgen 9y ago
        Does the men's or women's magazine explicitly work to prevent people of the other gender from being able to read its articles? You can legally pick an environment/medium in which to run your ad that may have a specific demographic, but when you get to explicitly set viewership then you have to be much more careful.
- syshum 9y ago
  On it owns, isolated, it is likely not enough to find a company guilty of discrimination, however it can be used as part of a pattern of behavior to prove discrimination if other actions, inaction's, or behaviors are found to be present at the company
- gehwartzen 9y ago
  According to the EEOC, yes it is: >"It is also illegal for an employer to recruit new employees in a way that discriminates against them because of their race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. For example, an employer's reliance on word-of-mouth recruitment by its mostly Hispanic work force may violate the law if the result is that almost all new hires are Hispanic."
  - totalZero 9y ago
    What about campus recruiting?
f4rker 9y ago
They are big companies who shit money and lawyers. Laws are for other people.
gnopgnip 9y ago
It is illegal to discriminate based on age in hiring practices. It is not illegal to discriminate in advertising, or specifically target spending for advertising.
reubeniv 9y ago
Depends, it's not technically illegal if it's done to promote numbers of people in another protected group

e40 9y ago

I want to believe these companies don't know it's illegal to discriminate based on age. Are you serious? This is HR 101. There is no manager in the US that works for a company with an HR department (1 person is fine, that's all we have, and she's part time) could ever NOT know this.

extrapickles 9y ago
In the US, an employer is even required to put up posters saying that its illegal to discriminate on age.

yuhong 9y ago

Not that I like these laws anyway. they were really designed for manual labor and the like.

baddox 9y ago

Genuine question: is it explicitly illegal to discriminate in your outreach for job applications? Surely similar behavior happens all the time without as much outcry, like recruiting at college career fairs.

e40 9y ago
If you only look for employees in places with young people, that is likely illegal. It would take a pattern of this over time. If someone found out (e.g., an inside ratted you out), and a lawyer took it on contingency (because the company doing it has deep pockets), then it could be serious trouble.
drewcon 9y ago
This was my thought exactly. I'd like to know the answer to that. I think there's a difference b.w "we won't hire people over X yo for this job" and "90% of our applicants for this role are younger so we're just trying to spend our recruiting dollar in the most efficient way possible to reach those folks". Alternatively, they could simultaneously being running ads targeting employees of an older age with different messaging and content to get higher conversion. I'm interested to know at what point effective marketing crosses the line into discriminatory practice.
TheSmiddy 9y ago
At college career fairs you're selecting for people who are graduating with a relevant degree, there is no age requirements for attending college so a 55 year old who is just completing their bachelors could well be one of the people you recruit. Just because the environment you advertise in is inherently skewed young doesn't make it discrimination, explicitly preventing people of a certain age from seeing your ad is.
- harryh 9y ago
  explicitly preventing people of a certain age from seeing your ad is. But that's not what "you" are doing. All these jobs are public. Every company in America has a jobs page that anyone of any age is free to look at. What you are doing is not paying money to force your ad in front of people in a certain age.
  - lionelione43 9y ago
    You bring up a good point. If you choose specifically to advertise to a specific demographic, can you be fined for NOT advertising to another? Is a company that puts a job offer ad in a men's or women's magazine breaking the law?
    - evgen 9y ago
      Does the men's or women's magazine explicitly work to prevent people of the other gender from being able to read its articles? You can legally pick an environment/medium in which to run your ad that may have a specific demographic, but when you get to explicitly set viewership then you have to be much more careful.
syshum 9y ago
On it owns, isolated, it is likely not enough to find a company guilty of discrimination, however it can be used as part of a pattern of behavior to prove discrimination if other actions, inaction's, or behaviors are found to be present at the company
gehwartzen 9y ago
According to the EEOC, yes it is: >"It is also illegal for an employer to recruit new employees in a way that discriminates against them because of their race, color, religion, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation, and pregnancy), national origin, age (40 or older), disability or genetic information. For example, an employer's reliance on word-of-mouth recruitment by its mostly Hispanic work force may violate the law if the result is that almost all new hires are Hispanic."
- totalZero 9y ago
  What about campus recruiting?

f4rker 9y ago

They are big companies who shit money and lawyers. Laws are for other people.

gnopgnip 9y ago

It is illegal to discriminate based on age in hiring practices. It is not illegal to discriminate in advertising, or specifically target spending for advertising.

reubeniv 9y ago

Depends, it's not technically illegal if it's done to promote numbers of people in another protected group