News in Brief

The U.S. Supreme Court last week broadened the protections of a federal law that bars discrimination based on age.

In a unanimous ruling in O'Connor v. Consolidated Coin Caterers Corp. (Case No. 95-354), the court said older workers who lose their jobs can sue for age discrimination even if they are replaced by someone 40 or older, which is the age group protected by the Age Discrimination in Employment Act.

School districts have faced a small but growing number of lawsuits under the law, mostly involving cases where a younger teacher is hired instead of older applicants because of the salary savings involved in choosing...