The federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act ("ADEA") prohibits an employer from firing an employee because of his age. Some of the requirements for successfully brining such a claim are that the employee must be age 40 or older and replaced by someone sufficiently younger (i.e. 5 years younger), and age must be the "but for cause" of the termination. If you were replaced by someone age 56 or older, that would defeat your claim. If you were replaced by someone age 55 or younger, you may have a claim. If the employer indicated other reasons contributed to its decision (i.e. you have a poor attendance record), then that could defeat your claim. The coronavirus has impacted people ages 1 to 90. If the empoyer's only reason for firing you was your age, then you may have a claim for age discrimination.

The Americans With Disabilities Act ("ADA") prohibits employers from firing an employee they perceive as disabled even if the employee has no actual disability.

You should contact an experienced employment lawyer regarding your potential claims.

-John M. LaRosa
(302) 888-1290

Given the strain on retailers, your employer may wish to have you perform another less-customer facing job function. If your hours are still cut then you should be able to successfully apply for unemployment. There are a lot of legal unknowns in the current situation and I do not know whether this could amount to age discrimination and defer to employment law attorneys to further educate both of us. Good luck and stay healthy.