Amy E. Feldman
A manager said Gen Z’ers need not apply. It didn’t end well.
The Tampa Bay Times reported that a store manager at an Indiana Dollar Tree allegedly left a sign reading: “I apologize for us closing AGAIN. My 2 new cashiers quit because I said their boyfriends couldn’t stand here for their entire shift. Don’t hire Gen Zs. They don’t know what work actually means. NOW HIRING! *Baby Boomers ONLY!”
The manager, accused of age discrimination, is now out of a job, but here’s the thing: legally, at least under federal law, it isn’t illegal age discrimination. Federal law doesn’t protect workers for being too young, only for being too old which the law defines as age forty or older. Too old at forty? Brutal. Some state laws protect younger workers, but Indiana is not one of them so maybe the manager can get his job back so he’s not competing for jobs with the two Gen Z’ers he just fired.