Next Thursday, Boeing will welcome a new CEO. Boeing’s board of directors dispensed with its mandatory retirement age for Kelly Ortberg, an aerospace executive joining the organization at the age of 64.
Boeing is one of several companies of late doing away with mandatory retirement policies for CEOs. According to a recent feature in Fortune magazine, Disney, Target, 3M and Chevron have tabled the requirement to allow older CEOs like Bob Iger of Disney to continue in leadership positions.
There are various professions that may call for earlier retirement ages like pilots and firefighters, but unless there is a bona fides occupational reason to mandate an age to retire, in Ontario and most of Canada, mandatory retirement age is wholly discriminatory. And for good reason!
Like Ortberg and Iger, many employees continue to work into their 60s with no preplanned retirement age.
As pension plans are becoming a rarer perk, fewer employees have the financial means to retire at 65 than ever before.
Even when representing terminated executive employees that are not yet 65 years of age, many argue they have been “forced” into retirement. After the age of 55 many claim they are out of the running for similar senior roles with high pay, bonuses and benefits.
The courts have recognized that older employees are impacted by ageism in the workplace. Unfairly, employers are less likely to hire older employees. Because of this, courts recognize a longer period of damages for older employees on a wrongful termination.
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For example, in 2019 I represented a plaintiff who was a 65-year-old coordinator with 3.5 years of service at the time of his termination. His case was heard in the Superior Court of Justice and my client was awarded 11 months of wrongful dismissal damages, a clear nod to older employees facing ageism on terminations.
Perhaps Kelly Ortberg will serve as an unintentional hero for older employees looking to start the next act of their careers. It’s time to embrace the experience, tenacity and wealth of knowledge older employees can bring to any workplace.
Have a workplace question? Maybe I can help! Email me at [email protected] and your question may be featured in a future column.
The content of this article is general information only and is not legal advice.