When people as young as 35 are losing out on jobs because of their age, then you know something is wrong.
In our society we are expected to work longer and longer and yet we are seeing ageism everywhere we turn.
I am pulling together something to help the battle against ageism and I could do with your help.
Watch the video and please leave a comment bellow.
Hello Martin,
What do you have to say when age discrimination acts in reverse.
I have started to work at 13, and I did accumulated excperience over 14 years while I have also finished my studies up to master degree. I have at least 9 years relevant experience related to the field I am intrested in, yet I can’t nail any middle managment position because of my age, and this is valid both for advancement in the company I work for (being the youngest around, but having similar experience with the very oldest colleagues ) and also for the jobs I applied for lately.
I am good at what I’m doing and I also like it, the only thing I hate is limitations, being a person whit a hollistic view I like to have an overview of the whole not just a part of it.
Izabella, Thanks for sharing. It’s an interesting position. Ultimately you are suffering the same condition as any prejudice. The key to it and to overcoming ageism, is to demonstrate value and overcome fears. I cover this in the course in some detail. It’s not a simple thing but it is something that can be addressed.
Ageism – the dimension of ageism i don’t understand is why it is mainly practiced by older people (managers). I see them turning to younger people to get a grasp of the new technology (IT-social networking- iphones etc) while right in front of them is an older person (54) who has kept up, trained and retrained to ensure their knowledge is up to date, and will probably contribute more to their company as they will be of similar mindset, less likely to skive off or not report in because of hangovers. So come bosses! you’re the old one, give the older guys a chance
Point well made Peter. All we need to do is help you figure out how to package that up into something an employer can’t resist. I like your spirit.
Hi Martin,
I love your honest approach to life/work. I was very impressed with my personality profile report, it was spot on, & I felt a huge sense of relief knowing that ‘my gut’ instinct to be a TV Presenter was on the list of jobs (well under actress) so thank you! Thankfully, I have been very fortunate at getting ‘other’ very good Customer focused jobs upto now, & adored my 8 years as an air hostess, (this was also a suggested job on your list!) however the last few years I have fallen into real apathy & frustration as my dream job of TV Presenter seems to be slowly fading away….. 95% of castings are advertised for people below my age range, which is very disheartening. I know I need a break as I totally believe that I have what it takes to be successful, but am exhausted with it all at the moment, but am just hanging onto the hope I have deep within. Any advice would be welcomed! Thank you.
Hello Martin
I have listened to your video and feedback on the short psychometric test. I having glanced down this column and much resonates with me. What do I want and where do I want to be? I have been a bit of a sqare peg in a round hole. I was probably not the right fit for the job and undersold myself. Age can matter and I have come up against ageism but not always. It IS probably personality. I have a lot to offer but I need to get recognised. I was out of work for a few years(voluntarily) but now need to step back into it. I wish some of the voluntary work that I do in arts and heritage could be realised in a paid job. That would be a career change.
Kind regards
June
hello, Martin.
When I was studying – and in the end not finishing – my CPE in law as a mature student with a doctorate in another subject, here are two verbatim comments I got whilst prospecting for my future career:
Eminent Person A:
“I shall deny ever saying this to you, of course. However, I would never give you a pupillage in my chambers, let alone take you as a partner, because you are too old to take silk and then to become a judge. You can’t add to the reputation of my chambers in any way that counts. Women your age are pure poison.”
Powerful Person B, elsewhere:
“You’re the prefect candidate, from my perspective: you’re female, you’re science-based, you’re mature enough, and the judges would eat out of your hand. It might be quite difficult in Chambers, though, as the younger men might find it very hard to compete with you for briefs and that would lead to ill-feeling in people we’ve already accepted as colleagues. One of the things we aim to preserve is the good collegiate feeling we have in coming to work every day.”
Amazing stuff, eh? as your profile of me says, people confide in me and are happy to tell me what they think because I’m such a good listener.
Kind regards!
I thought only Latin American Countries be reluctant in recruiting people over 55 years old, mainly when female executives older than 55 y.o. asked for new employ opportunities. It is exciting to receive a phone call from somebody who feels your CV is interesting and the profile is “just what the company is looking” but when the interviewers in a very polite way ask for the birth date, the enchant disapear magically, and suddenly the profiles is “not what the company looks”. What is happening? All the talent, experience, stability, good mood and manners is throwing away and people is oblied to accept sub-employments or to start a “new business” or become a re-invented professional. Can you let me know your oppinion?
There are now so many things preventing me from getting to interview stage, that ageism is well down the list. I think my worst crime is the long gap since last employment, not to mention the gaps prior to that employment as I struggled to find something more worthwhile to do with the rest of my life.
I tried to reskill during these gaps, and am still trying to reskill but the courses are always elsewhere, the cost is too high for now and you seriously doubt whether spending your last couple of thou on yet more qualifications and training is what you should be doing with your meagre resources and time.
And will that choice prove any more ‘right’ for you than the last effort? – assumiing you get a job! And there’s an assumption with all the unemployed graduates equally desperate to get in there, so I’ve argued myself out of spending such sums and effort.
Self- employement – great! Yet more and more folk competing for the available money of companies and individuals. All very well if you’ve vast experience/achievements that can be sold as a consultancy. What about the ordinary joe/jane. Yet more online selling? Oh grim.
It is my opinion that one form or another of age discrimination is practiced by just about every organisation.
The reasons for practising it are numerous. Ranging from “corporate policy” wanting a succession of “new blood” to the personal preferences of individual doing the interviewing / hiring.
Everyone knows its illegal but that does not stop its wide spread use. Why?? Simply because it is extremely difficult to prove!
The Equality Act has come in to force in Britain and is aimed at banning discrimination by employers, covering areas such as age, disability, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion and belief, gender and sexual orientation.
Hiring some should be about finding out if ‘they’, the interviewee, can get along with others, if they can work together with existing staff, that they can disagree professionally, that they can challenge professionally ~ engage in lively debate, share the challenges and celebrate the successes. That they are willing to be accountable, responsible, and are will engage and learn ~ be keen, determined, respectful, honest.
But all these attributes have a double edge. If the interviewee possesses these traits, or even half of them, then they just may be “better” than the person they are going to work for!
Perhaps the thing about age discrimination being illegal is that it means there’s far less honesty and openness about the reasons for it. Stupidly, we all know that age discrimination is practiced by just about every organisation, but what we don’t REALLY know is WHY it’s practiced. What are the real reasons why organisations don’t want older people, despite their greater experience and their maturity?
I know all the usual reasons that are cited, but how can we validate whether any or all of those are the real truth? Or could the real reason be something that’s not amongst the usual reasons?
Maybe everyone who is “d’un certain âge” should be being encouraged, even helped in significant ways, to start their own business – at least where they have the necessary skills and abilities to do so. And particularly if they would be able to create jobs for others as well as for themselves. The EU is striving to get the SPE company format into operation, which will allow companies to be formed with a minimum capitalisation of €1, the ability to operate freely throughout the EU, and the freedom to choose in which EU country to be domiciled (for tax purposes etc). OK, on its own, this won’t solve the problems, but it’s not the only thing that is being done, or can be done.
Maybe the EU should also encourage the national governments to offer people who wish to start up a new business a guaranteed minimum income whilst they get their new business u-and-running, rather than simply pay people to sit on their butts at home, wasting away?
I’m sure I can think of more constructive ideas, but I’ll leave it at that for now!
Being female, I have been subjected to more than just ageism. When younger I found employers would ask when I was thinking of starting a family seeing I was of child bearing age. Then having two young children, childhood illnesses became the issue, having time off work to look after sick children. Now, approaching retirement age, how long will I be working for the company. I feel physically well, have no ailments, and seriously, think I will be working for a long time, can’t see myself giving up working or at least trying to get the perfect job.
Thanks for sharing Rosemary. I like that you are still looking for your perfect job and there is no reason you shouldn’t find it. I like your approach.
I moved from South Africa, from owning my own successful small business, to the UK.
I was 52 years old and decided to take on employment while I built a website as another small business.
It took me 6 months to get an interview, and that only with a lot of pushing. The job agency said no one was interested in interviewing me, although I have an engineering diploma and years of machine design experience on CAD systems.
I had to take what I could get, a project engineering job although I knew it would be the opposite of what my personality feels most at home with.
The result – limited success, difficulty in delivering what I can, young boss who gets frustrated with my detailed and somewhat ponderous approach, and not much job satisfaction. After three years I have managed to adapt and make my employers happy, but even at my age feel I am wasting precious time, after having been very happy in my own business despite the much bigger pressures involved.
I know for certain that it was an age issue that kept me out of ideal employment and need to get back on track.
Terence, As is so often the case, this is a personality issue not an age issue. Your detailed approach to things is not an age issue it’s your personality. It’s probably what makes you a good engineer.
Humans are incredibly adaptable but it’s not always the best thing in the long run. It stresses us when we can’t live and work in harmony with our core personality.
Qualifications (and standards) have changed and the young recruiters aren’t aware of this. So my physics PhD that was so sought after in other fields (such as finance in previous decades) is just so much trash nowadays, because qualifications are so job-specific, focused on the software familiarity one has rather than the ability to think. And it seems only the last 2 years’ job experience counts…
Averil, You have hit upon something that is very true. Skills devalue faster than they ever did. Employers don’t realise that hiring on skills is a very poor selection criteria. A more holistic approach is required. However this is something we can tackle. Thanks for bringing this up.
As a senior Project Manager, now 53 with a great deal of multi national / cultural experience to offer and supposedly highly transferrable skills. I took a year off to get married and have children but now, getting back on the tread mill and trying to re start a career that does not depend totally on self employment we are going nowhere and the grey hair and the experience are a positive disadvantage…you´re a threat, you can´t be so easily abused, you´re not flexible….too old for production work…etc. etc….
And if I were to talk about my now deceased and brilliant Fathers´ frustrations at having to retire when he was 64….
Its not ego…its just an enormous waste of a valuable resource if its used properly
Charles, thanks for sharing. I couldn’t agree more with you. Our most valuable resource is being squandered.
Hello Martin
I enjoy your videos – you give the impression of talking to one, it is nice!
Ageism – illegal, of course, but is it the sight of a person who is clearly older, is it that the interviewer thinks one will be difficult to manage because one is (possibly) more experienced than they, or is it personal.
Maybe I have left moving out of self-employment too late but it is becoming disheartening to get an interview for every one hundred and fifty jobs applied for and then not get the job, I have now been for ten interviews. So, is there something wrong with me or how I come across? It isn’t for lack of skills, experience or not being warmed to so……? I need to eat too!!!
Kind regards.
Angela
Really appreciate the comment Angela. I just recorded a video about this very subject yesterday, which I will release soon. I interviewed an Australian yesterday who helps people start their own Internet business. He has a client who is a 65 year old woman with no Internet experience and barely knew her way around a computer. I think many people of “d’un certain age” will become entrepreneurs and thrive.