Puerto Rico (PR) Age Discrimination Law in the Workplace

August 23rd, 2006 Posted by Ashley

For workers in the Caribbean region, the announcement of an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) office in San Juan, Puerto Rico seemed to be welcome news. On July 30, 2001, the EEOC opened the doors to the agency’s first office outside the 50 states and District of Columbia. Puerto Rico is a United States territory with commonwealth status, meaning that it is an organized territory or colony with an established relationship with the U.S. government.

If you were a worker in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, you began to be served by the new office, rather than the New York district office, as was previously the case. In making the announcement just five years ago, the agency emphasized that the population of Puerto Rico was larger than that of 30 U.S. states. Keep in mind that the U.S. Department of Labor already maintained offices in the region.

One of the key factors used in making the decision was the 14% unemployment in Puerto Rico at the time. In conducting research, I found the EEOC felt it was important to address fair and non-discriminatory employment practices in this situation. Employers and workers were thus covered by federal laws such as the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA).

Prior to the opening of the regional office, the EEOC announced a disability discrimination settlement with La Cruz Azul (Blue Cross) of Puerto Rico. For instance, one individual was awarded $200,000 under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, which was actually administered through the New York office. Then in a more recent case (2005), a complaint was filed by a worker who claimed that a company in Puerto Rico did not hire him because of his national origin and age. For this instance, the complaint cited the U.S. law (ADEA) and claimed that the company used younger, less experienced people to do a job for which the complainant said he was qualified.

Another question that came up in Puerto Rico was the “whistle-blower” law that protects those who report possible discriminatory practices from retaliation. One legal writer notes that the statute applies to federal entities in the commonwealth and not just to agencies of the Puerto Rican government. In addition, age discrimination is of concern to the Federal Maritime Commission, an independent agency that oversees regulation of ocean commerce.

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Posted in Discrimination, Employment Laws, Hostile Environment, Puerto Rico

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