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livingwordunity
Guest
Age discrimination in employment is done openly nearly everywhere and with no apologies. And people seem to take it for granted.
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Jeanne_S
Guest
Yep.I have a good friend,who after working for near thirty years for the same company,was laid off in 08’ at the age of sixty.She is still unemployed to this day.A single woman who needs an income.Very discouraging.
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Least
Guest
The color of “elephant in the living room” is BLUE and it is small and feeble and looks like a kicking donkey.
I hope you (or whoever your post is in regards to) gets a meaningful job, but the true failure is in anyone’s assuming that employment is owed to you (a person).
Go work for yourself, then, if discriminated against, you have a real gripe and you can slap yourself.
I hope you (or whoever your post is in regards to) gets a meaningful job, but the true failure is in anyone’s assuming that employment is owed to you (a person).
Go work for yourself, then, if discriminated against, you have a real gripe and you can slap yourself.
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lerapt78
Guest
The “standard” reasons for age discrimination:
1.)Technological requirements of jobs. Employers may feel that if older employees don’t have the same computer skills/knowledge as those who grew up in the technological age, they may not work as quickly or efficiently as others.
2.)Return investment for the costs of hiring (training, bonuses, etc), by expecting the employee to provide a minimum number of years of service. As with women of child-bearing age, with whom it is assumed will possibly quit work or request time off to raise children, employers may think “why should I bother to hire on and train someone who is going to retire in a few years?”
3.)The assumption that the older person, who has more work experience, would demand a higher salary than a kid just out of college.
4.) Something possibly to do with health insurance? (I don’t know much about how this is legally set up.)
On the one hand, I can understand the reasons, but on the other hand I wonder if they are really still applicable. An older worker is not incapable of learning basic software applications. How long would that take to gain an adequate proficiency - 2 or 3 weeks? No big deal. Many adults now are working well past the standard retirement age, so an employer can get a good 6-10 years’ worth of service. And it’s up to the employee whether or not to expect the salary offered, even if it’s lower than what he thinks he deserves. It’s not as though companies are forced to pay more with age.
The economy has changed quite a bit over the years as well, so the “return on investment” theory doesn’t really hold as much as it used to either. We no longer live in an age where employees were loyal to the company, and the company in turn took care of them. People up and quit now all the time, and lay-offs often come unexpectedly and with no warning. Most companies are “at-will” now which, while it is not necessarily a bad thing, can tend to produce a sense of exploitation and disloyalty between company/worker. It’s got to be hard to expect more than the bare minimum from an employee who feels no job security.
When I think of the jobs I’ve shared with 20-30 year-olds, I won’t deny there were many great employees. At the same time, I can also recall how many of them would often come in late, skirt work when the boss wasn’t looking, exchange text messages on the sly all day long, call out “sick” when they wanted a day off, use foul language in the work place, and whine all day about their jobs when they should have quit or just been happy to have one at all. The number of those types of employees wasn’t very low, either.
I don’t own a business, but if I did, I think I would actually be in favor of the older adult. It’s my personal stereotype, but I think the older generation (60s +) had a better work ethic, understanding of responsibility, better sense of decorum, civility, and manners. I’ve always enjoyed being around the elderly though, so maybe I’m biased.
1.)Technological requirements of jobs. Employers may feel that if older employees don’t have the same computer skills/knowledge as those who grew up in the technological age, they may not work as quickly or efficiently as others.
2.)Return investment for the costs of hiring (training, bonuses, etc), by expecting the employee to provide a minimum number of years of service. As with women of child-bearing age, with whom it is assumed will possibly quit work or request time off to raise children, employers may think “why should I bother to hire on and train someone who is going to retire in a few years?”
3.)The assumption that the older person, who has more work experience, would demand a higher salary than a kid just out of college.
4.) Something possibly to do with health insurance? (I don’t know much about how this is legally set up.)
On the one hand, I can understand the reasons, but on the other hand I wonder if they are really still applicable. An older worker is not incapable of learning basic software applications. How long would that take to gain an adequate proficiency - 2 or 3 weeks? No big deal. Many adults now are working well past the standard retirement age, so an employer can get a good 6-10 years’ worth of service. And it’s up to the employee whether or not to expect the salary offered, even if it’s lower than what he thinks he deserves. It’s not as though companies are forced to pay more with age.
The economy has changed quite a bit over the years as well, so the “return on investment” theory doesn’t really hold as much as it used to either. We no longer live in an age where employees were loyal to the company, and the company in turn took care of them. People up and quit now all the time, and lay-offs often come unexpectedly and with no warning. Most companies are “at-will” now which, while it is not necessarily a bad thing, can tend to produce a sense of exploitation and disloyalty between company/worker. It’s got to be hard to expect more than the bare minimum from an employee who feels no job security.
When I think of the jobs I’ve shared with 20-30 year-olds, I won’t deny there were many great employees. At the same time, I can also recall how many of them would often come in late, skirt work when the boss wasn’t looking, exchange text messages on the sly all day long, call out “sick” when they wanted a day off, use foul language in the work place, and whine all day about their jobs when they should have quit or just been happy to have one at all. The number of those types of employees wasn’t very low, either.
I don’t own a business, but if I did, I think I would actually be in favor of the older adult. It’s my personal stereotype, but I think the older generation (60s +) had a better work ethic, understanding of responsibility, better sense of decorum, civility, and manners. I’ve always enjoyed being around the elderly though, so maybe I’m biased.
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DaveBj
Guest
Nothing new here. Back in the '90s I was working for a federal agency that I won’t name. At that time, if one was a 40-something woman, one could be very promotable, whereas if one was a 50-something man (i.e., potentially approaching retirementa), fuggedaboudit! Wasn’t going to happen. I took a buyout, retired, and did not let the door hit me in the butt on the way out.
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LisaA
Guest
Very thoughtful post. Thank you for taking the time. I think you are spot on with regard to many of the issues. To some extent the stereotypes have a bit of truth…for example if you have a lot of older people on your health insurance, it has in the past, served to increase rates. I am not sure Obamacare still allows this as it does not allow rating based on sex (females are MUCH bigger users of healthcare than males). Further in the old days with standard defined benefit pensions, companies wanted younger people who required much smaller contributions to the plans. These days they are virtually all defined contribution plans so this old bias should be given a decent burial. Maybe though as you said, the illusions linger on.The “standard” reasons for age discrimination:
1.)Technological requirements of jobs. Employers may feel that if older employees don’t have the same computer skills/knowledge as those who grew up in the technological age, they may not work as quickly or efficiently as others.
2.)Return investment for the costs of hiring (training, bonuses, etc), by expecting the employee to provide a minimum number of years of service. As with women of child-bearing age, with whom it is assumed will possibly quit work or request time off to raise children, employers may think “why should I bother to hire on and train someone who is going to retire in a few years?”
3.)The assumption that the older person, who has more work experience, would demand a higher salary than a kid just out of college.
4.) Something possibly to do with health insurance? (I don’t know much about how this is legally set up.)
On the one hand, I can understand the reasons, but on the other hand I wonder if they are really still applicable. An older worker is not incapable of learning basic software applications. How long would that take to gain an adequate proficiency - 2 or 3 weeks? No big deal. Many adults now are working well past the standard retirement age, so an employer can get a good 6-10 years’ worth of service. And it’s up to the employee whether or not to expect the salary offered, even if it’s lower than what he thinks he deserves. It’s not as though companies are forced to pay more with age.
The economy has changed quite a bit over the years as well, so the “return on investment” theory doesn’t really hold as much as it used to either. We no longer live in an age where employees were loyal to the company, and the company in turn took care of them. People up and quit now all the time, and lay-offs often come unexpectedly and with no warning. Most companies are “at-will” now which, while it is not necessarily a bad thing, can tend to produce a sense of exploitation and disloyalty between company/worker. It’s got to be hard to expect more than the bare minimum from an employee who feels no job security.
When I think of the jobs I’ve shared with 20-30 year-olds, I won’t deny there were many great employees. At the same time, I can also recall how many of them would often come in late, skirt work when the boss wasn’t looking, exchange text messages on the sly all day long, call out “sick” when they wanted a day off, use foul language in the work place, and whine all day about their jobs when they should have quit or just been happy to have one at all. The number of those types of employees wasn’t very low, either.
I don’t own a business, but if I did, I think I would actually be in favor of the older adult. It’s my personal stereotype, but I think the older generation (60s +) had a better work ethic, understanding of responsibility, better sense of decorum, civility, and manners. I’ve always enjoyed being around the elderly though, so maybe I’m biased.
I agree that healthy older workers tend to be outstanding employees. Along with the work ethic, their lives are not so complicated as either young singles who are worried about work interfering with their social lives or young marrieds who may be dealing with pregnancies, sick kids and daycare issues. To be honest a few years ago, I pronounced no one with functioning ovaries would be hired…tongue in cheek…but this was after dealing with one employee after another who had excessive absences, mid day crises at school or daycare plus many daytime appointments and distractions as little Suzie called twenty seven times a day
.Aside from that since I resemble that remark (older employee) and know I have great health, energy, ability to learn new technology and work ethic, I really abhor this particular bias.
Lisa
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lerapt78
Guest
Thanks!
This is the part that confuses me. Aren’t companies allowed to determine for themselves which types of insurance plans they’ll offer and whether or not they will (as a company) contribute? Or are they legally required to offer a minimum insurance standard?
Re: the pension issue - many companies now are just offering 401(k) plans to employees, although not every company contributes to it.
It would be hard *not *to understand that sentiment.I agree that healthy older workers tend to be outstanding employees. Along with the work ethic, their lives are not so complicated as either young singles who are worried about work interfering with their social lives or young marrieds who may be dealing with pregnancies, sick kids and daycare issues. To be honest a few years ago, I pronounced no one with functioning ovaries would be hired…tongue in cheek…but this was after dealing with one employee after another who had excessive absences, mid day crises at school or daycare plus many daytime appointments and distractions as little Suzie called twenty seven times a day
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livingwordunity
Guest
You make it sound so easy. Just do it. But do what? Work for myself doing what? And doesn’t it take money to start working for yourself?
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Least
Guest
Finally getting around to the right questions, except the answer (still) may not come from me.
The cavalry is not coming, can I count on you to move you. I would grab a hold of any moving object that can bear the extra load, friends, family, church or community, the SBA, and look into franchising, anything. People who have the blessing of the gift of maturity (even if it is your only gift/talent [AND IT AIN’T!!!]) have the duty to exercise that gift.
I want to be able to come to you in a year and ask for a job. You can tell me “No, you are too old.” And I’ll wink.
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Viki63
Guest
I am 69 and still working, and consider myself fortunate. But my supervisor recently said we should all update our resumes.
If you’re looking for work, there are some fields that have high demand. You could look into those. Among them are IT, and medical fields such as medical transcriptionists. Parents are looking for people to care for their children during work, others are looking for companions or help for elderly people. What you pursue depends on your skills and interests.
The Division of vocational rehabilitation exists to help people find work.
If you’re looking for work, there are some fields that have high demand. You could look into those. Among them are IT, and medical fields such as medical transcriptionists. Parents are looking for people to care for their children during work, others are looking for companions or help for elderly people. What you pursue depends on your skills and interests.
The Division of vocational rehabilitation exists to help people find work.
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