Dirty Words at Work
Age: Discrimination in the Workplace
noun: Age
“Protected class,” “retirement,” “experience,” and “seniority” often come to mind when people think of age discrimination in the workplace. At work a taboo topic like age is often avoided for fear of retaliation. Age discrimination often isn’t even discussed. While illegal, it comes in many different forms that are seldom considered.
Unavoidable issues
Unconscious thoughts (often called micro-aggressions) are nearly unavoidable. This is one of the single biggest concerns regarding age.
Age can be considered a barrier not just for those who are older but also younger in years.
Micro-aggressions result when someone has a preconceived image of how old someone should look and a worker in such a position appears much younger or older than this image. After all, it isn’t uncommon to picture a certain age of worker for any particular position. Customers and outside observers are just as susceptible to this problem. It even extends from co-workers to management and Human Resources.
Potential employers are under increasing scrutiny for age discrimination in their hiring process. Despite this, many can attest to the frustrations of applying for a job.
Skilled positions often require college degrees and multiple years of experience. While someone on the younger side of the spectrum may find difficulty gaining employment with little to no experience, others might feel frustrated at their coworkers lack of acceptance to new ideas. Still others might struggle to gain the acceptance of their colleagues.
On the other hand, older employees are more likely to remain jobless after losing a job. Studies have also shown that over 50% of older workers will be laid off at least once.
The views about someone’s age and the position they work in can create a cognitive divide. This divide can make people feel isolated, singled out, or stereotyped. These issues are just starting to be discussed among HR, if at all.
Even today, discussions of age discrimination focus on older populations that are forced to retire, bullying behavior, or hiring discrimination. The focus is rarely on positive stereotypes or those micro-aggressions faced by younger populations.
Is age discrimination in the workplace actually a problem?
Age discrimination laws protect people over the age of 40, but is it enough?
That depends on who you ask.
Employers like to harp on the value of diversity and inclusion.
“It leads to new innovations.”
“We want to be the employer of choice and attract talent.”
It seems then that employers would have much to gain from a diverse workforce. Or at least they believe they have much to gain.
What about the rest of us? Have you ever felt frustrated to find an intriguing position with great opportunities, only to be turned down because you lacked the necessary experience? Was it because you lacked the skills the potential employer was looking for? Or was it because you weren’t old and “experienced” enough?
Or have you ever attempted to rejoin the workforce after losing a job you held for 20 years, only to face discrimination because of your age?
Whether or not we want to admit it, age discrimination is a real issue that thousands, if not millions of us face.
How do we move forward?
It starts with each of us.
Have you been in the position where you treated someone differently because of their age? Have you turned a potential employee away because they didn’t fit your image of an “ideal” employee? Did you do anything to fix it? Have you ever noticed when someone else discriminated against someone because of their age?
We have the ability to make change happen, at least within our realm of influence. Nothing will change, however, unless we are willing to do something about it.
Recommended Reading:
Introduction to Dirty Words at Work