POJA Act of 2025

The Protect Older Job Applicants Act of 2025 (POJA Act) would expand the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) to cover job applicants, not just current employees. Specifically, it would prohibit employers from limiting, segregating, or classifying applicants for employment on the basis of age, aligning hiring protections with existing protections against age discrimination in the workplace. In addition, the bill requires the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to conduct a study within one year of enactment to determine how many ADEA claims involving job applicants have been filed or are pending since 2015 (including closed cases) and to publish a report with recommendations and best practices to prevent, combat, and address age discrimination in the hiring process. The bill is introduced as H.R. 5514 (POJA Act of 2025) and would be enforced under the ADEA framework.