Employment & Labor Law
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Smith v. J. Smith Lanier & Co.
17 Fla. L. Weekly C111 (11th Cir. December 12, 2003)
Employee, whose position was terminated as part of reduction in force, brought suit against the employer for failing to rehire or transfer her to other positions within company in violation of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The lower court granted the employer's motion for summary judgment, finding that the employee failed to produce any evidence that she applied for a job or put her employer on notice that she was interested in a specific position. Employee appealed. The Court held that the employee's general statement, at time of her dismissal, that she was willing to take any open position within company, without submitting application for any specific job, did not impose a duty on the employer to consider her for open positions that it had publicized. The ADEA only provides that a discharged employee who applies for a job for which she is qualified and which is available at the time of her termination must be considered for that job along with all other candidates, and cannot be denied the position based upon her age. Jameson v. Arrow Co., 75 F.3d 1528, 1531-32 (11th Cir. 1996). The court further held that the employer's failure to consider employee for such positions was insufficient to establish a prima facie case of age discrimination under the ADEA.
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