Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
It doesn't make financial sense to discriminate due to age or gender or race or religion. Employers strive for the lowest labor rates possible to meet staffing requirements. If they discriminate, then they reduce the labor supply which, for a given labor demand, raises labor rates.
Also, labor hiring practices are monitored very closely. That's HR's job. HR isn't there to help employees; HR is there to protect the company FROM employees. They must report who they hire, who they fire, who they didn't hire, etc. on a regular basis to ensure discrimination isn't occurring. This is a big deal.
Finally, no company wants to set itself up for lawsuits. Itchy lawyers would love to file claims on behalf of allegedly discriminated clients - but it doesn't happen too often.
It's easier for an older worker to reconcile lack of job offers as discrimination than it is for him to state what's really happening: He expects 30 years of experience salary; his skills have not kept up; he is more expensive to insure (yes, that is a cost as an independent variable), and he's a liability because he's more likely to quit if something better comes along - another "statistics indicate" reason that a hiring manager interested in the bottom line considers.
Pardon my rebuttal, but you must be either joking or work in HR. Or you must work for one of Americas top 10 employers and have ideal work conditions?
Of course it exists in the real world, but if it occurs before the person is hired, it's pretty easy to find a different reason not to hire a candidate, not that it's even necessary to justify it. It's not the same as having an employee where you have to justify things. I have interviewed at least 100 people in my career and I never have had to justify NOT hiring someone at the same level as if I were letting someone go or giving them a poor review.
In many companies there are huge layoffs and a disproportionate number of over-50 are given packages to leave. When it's done during a downsizing and packages are offered, it is perceived as less offensive to the impacted, but it doesn't change the statistics. If no one sues, then technically you are right, there is no age discrimination.
At my company, the highest paid employees are the oldest employees. When they hired for the highest paying positions management, they opt for people in their 50's instead of their 30's.
When you look at the age of the executive management of the Fortune 500 in the annual reports, the majority of them are in their 50's. When new guys get hired, it's not a 30 year old mid-career guy being hired to be a SVP. The smaller companies tend to higher less experienced and younger people, when they can't afford the big bucks for a veteran with decades of experience.
Many companies don't want to hire experienced people over 50, who are going to want more money and don't have THAT many years to work. They'd rather bring in younger people that they can start at low salaries, over having someone who already knows what they are doing/
It doesn't make financial sense to discriminate due to age or gender or race or religion. Employers strive for the lowest labor rates possible to meet staffing requirements. If they discriminate, then they reduce the labor supply which, for a given labor demand, raises labor rates.
Also, labor hiring practices are monitored very closely. That's HR's job. HR isn't there to help employees; HR is there to protect the company FROM employees. They must report who they hire, who they fire, who they didn't hire, etc. on a regular basis to ensure discrimination isn't occurring. This is a big deal.
Finally, no company wants to set itself up for lawsuits. Itchy lawyers would love to file claims on behalf of allegedly discriminated clients - but it doesn't happen too often.
It's easier for an older worker to reconcile lack of job offers as discrimination than it is for him to state what's really happening: He expects 30 years of experience salary; his skills have not kept up; he is more expensive to insure (yes, that is a cost as an independent variable), and he's a liability because he's more likely to quit if something better comes along - another "statistics indicate" reason that a hiring manager interested in the bottom line considers.
Not a myth at all, just that they don't come out and blatantly say why they aren't hiring you. I know many people who have worked for years in a field, are older and can't find work. I worked for many years for an international law firm and when they did a layoff, the first to go were the over 50 crowd who had been there for years and were making top salary.
Again, if you go IN at 55, they aren't going to be worrying about paying your retirement benefits. They may boot someone who has been there almost long enough to retire, but it won't stop them from hiring someone else who is the same age. It's not about age for these companies, it's about benefits. If you're in your 50's and have been there for 20+ years, they know if you stay for another few, you have full retirement. That's when they start weeding out people. However, hiring someone new in that age group pays because chances are you won't live long enough or work long enough to earn full retirement.
Are you a good driver? With a good record? Here is something you might want to consider. In about a month a lot of new car dealers are going to be swapping cars back and forth when the new 2014's come out. The factories deal out the cars and many times the dealers do not get what they or the customer wants. They need someone to go get these cars and bring them back. I'm 69 and recently drove to Texas to pick up a new $50 K car to bring back here. I'm on a regular payroll right now although things are slow but I was not looking for a full-time job. You might even like it and want to do it full time. One dealer I used to do this might drive a 1,000 miles or more to pick up a car or truck. The alternative is to flatbed them back to the dealership and lose a sale.
I had to pass a background check and a drug test so if you are clean you might be able to get something going. I'm told in about a month I will have more than I can keep up with and they will be hiring more drivers. And it might be a foot in the door as well. Maybe you could wind up selling cars. Most car salesmen really don't know much about the cars they sell anyway. It is all about building confidence in the customers and evaluating the true prospects from the suspects.
Something to think about.
If it turns out you don't like it it will reflect favorably on your next job interview. Shows initiative.
If all else fails, make a pest out of yourself down at the unemployment office. That's what I had to do when we moved across the country to our new location we stayed for the next 26 years. They'll probably send you on job interviews just to get you out of their hair and there is also the internet to use as well.
Being unemployed is a morale destroying situation. No question about it but there are alternatives. Getting out of bed and just remember that many employers don't even realize they need a person of your talents until you sell themselves on you. Surprising how they can sometimes "fit you in" when they realize what you have to offer. Personally I think sending out all those resumes is largely a waste of time anyway. And also the personnel office is not for the purpose of hiring anyway. It is just a bureaucracy that all large organizations have because it is traditional to have one. It is to weed out the unqualified. Go to the person or part of the organization you actually want to work for instead.
And finally don't lock yourself into the wage trap. Everything is negotiable. A 100% of $10 an hour is better than a 100% of a $100 an hour job that doesn't exist.
Last edited by rmissourimule; 07-31-2013 at 11:06 PM..
Adding to my recent reply are today's data. Looking really good. Number of people applying for unemployment benefits at a five year low. This should help everyone looking for jobs. It's the old supply and demand law of economics. When the demand outpaces supply, the price goes up and vice versa. One could argue that we have been in a "buyer's" market in that the employers had plenty of supply of labor. Now that it is going down, the demand for the remaining employees will pick up as will the price of labor.
This is a little off the subject but I think is a good concrete example. Ever since we had the so-called "cash for clunkers" program that took a lot of the supply of used cars off the market the prices of used cars has sky rocketed. I was looking at used cars recently for a second car and the prices were just ridiculous. I got a new one instead; in fact two new cars although the second one was to replace another with one more to my liking. It is my view that there are many people who will be thrust into the auto marketplace to replace their very old vehicles (age at historic levels) and that will cause a mini boom in the auto industry (even most 'imports' are assembled in the U.S. today) and those are high paying jobs. We could be on the cusp of an economic boom we haven't seen in a decade or more. In the end economics always wins out over politics no matter how good or bad the political decisions might be have been.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Or you must work for one of Americas top 10 employers and have ideal work conditions?
I've found this to be true
