Do State Laws Protecting Older Workers from Discrimination Reduce Age Discrimination in Hiring? Evidence from a Field...

Area of Science:

• Labor Economics
• Applied Microeconomics
• Public Policy

Background:

• Age discrimination in hiring is a significant issue affecting older workers.
• Existing state laws aim to protect older workers but their effectiveness varies.
• Potential unintended consequences of these laws, such as increased termination costs, need examination.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the impact of state laws on age discrimination in hiring for retail sales positions.
• To analyze how variations in age and disability discrimination laws influence callback rates for older applicants.
• To determine if protective legislation deters hiring of older workers.

Main Methods:

• A resume field experiment conducted across all U.S. states.
• Analysis of callback rates for older versus younger applicants.
• Econometric modeling relating callback rate differences to state-level legal variations.

Main Results:

• Evidence suggests less age discrimination against older men and women in states with stronger age discrimination laws (higher damages).
• Limited evidence indicates lower discrimination against older women in states with stronger disability discrimination laws.
• No evidence found that these laws negatively impact callback rates for older workers.

Conclusions:

• State laws protecting older workers, particularly those with stronger age discrimination provisions, appear effective in reducing hiring discrimination.
• Disability discrimination laws may offer some protection to older women, though the effect is less pronounced.
• The study's findings alleviate concerns about unintended negative consequences of these protective laws on older job applicants.