NCJ Number
103277
Date Published
1986
Length
107 pages
Annotation
Oral and written testimony focuses on the retirement age limits of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and on proposed exemptions for police and firefighters.
Abstract
A proposed law, H.R. 1435, would permit State and local governments to retire police and firefighters at a lower age than 70 and to impose a maximum age for entering these positions. Employers currently can lower the limit only if they can show age to be a bona fide occupational qualification for a job. Testimony supporting the legislation came from representatives of police organizations, firefighters' organizations, and State and municipal government organizations. Supporters noted that Federal firefighters and Federal law enforcement personnel as well as certain other Federal employees have mandatory retirement ages of 55-65. They also argued that medical technology and knowledge do not permit sufficiently reliable testing of intellectual and psychomotor functioning. The Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities opposed the bill on the grounds that no medical or administrative justification exists for such an extreme departure from established law.