THE OWBPA AFTER OUBRE - EMPLOYER REMEDIES WHEN WORKERS CHALLENGE ADEAWAIVERS

The Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA) regulates waivers of claims under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) by settin g minimum standards to ensure that an ADEA waiver is ''knowing and vol untary.'' In several lawsuits involving waivers that violated OWBPA's standards, courts ruled that employees could not pursue their ADEA cla ims because they had filed suit without first tendering back! the mone y received for the non-conforming waiver. On January 26, 1998 the Supr eme Court resolved a split of authority on this issue by rejecting the ''tender back'' doctrine as a defense to an ADEA claim in Oubre v. En tergy Operations, Inc., 118 S. Ct. 838 (1998). In addition to reviewin g the Oubre decision, this article considers the potential remedies av ailable to employers faced with attacks on waivers that allegedly do n ot comply with OWBPA standards.