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Recently the organization I work for has been bringing lots of people in for job interviews. I see them sitting in their suits waiting in the lobby and so many of them recently seem so old. I hear from HR that many of the applicants who have come in are 55-65 years old and have been out of work for a long time. Many just seem so old and I wonder if they will ever work again in a professional full time job.
The hiring managers have not been to encouraging for these long term unemployed older men, so far none of them are being hired. Instead we are hiring people in their prime years (their 30s). There seems to be a preference for applicants in their 30s. Young enough to be full of energy and drive, but mature enough to understand business and how to behave in the office.
When I look at these sad older men with their 20 year old suit coats sitting in the lobby waiting to be rejected, my mind goes back to the 1990s, when they were likely very marketable and on top of their game. Did they ever realize it would come to this 20 years later?
If your organization is hiring people in their "prime years (their 30s)", why are they bringing in people for interviews that are 55-65 years old? Based on the history of hiring none in that age group, it surely seems a waste of time. Especially since it apparently appears there is no intention to hire them anyway.
You know, not everyone in that age group wears old out-of-date clothes and many of them are "full of energy and drive" as well as being mature, do understand business and how to behave in an office.
Of course a lot of people in their 50s and 60s who are unemployed could very well be in tough financial shape but it might surprise you to learn that some of them might have pensions/IRAs/possibly drawing SS/house paid for/no debts/etc (or some combination or other) and are well fixed financially who are simply not ready to retire and are looking for jobs that might utilize their years of knowledge and experience.
And " Did they ever realize it would come to this 20 years later? ". OF COURSE MOST REALIZED IT. I am even past the 55-65 age group, retired and have been well aware of this issue for many years. Do you think we older people are complete fools?
The hiring managers have not been to encouraging for these long term unemployed older men, so far none of them are being hired. Instead we are hiring people in their prime years (their 30s). There seems to be a preference for applicants in their 30s. Young enough to be full of energy and drive, but mature enough to understand business and how to behave in the office.
And willing to put up with all of the B.S. the company throws at them and not complain. And not be intimidating due to 30-40 years experience in the workforce and education to match. And by the way, people in their 50s know how to behave in the office, they're just not going to tell you it's raining when you're p*****g on their leg.
When I look at these sad older men with their 20 year old suit coats sitting in the lobby waiting to be rejected, my mind goes back to the 1990s, when they were likely very marketable and on top of their game. Did they ever realize it would come to this 20 years later?
Probably not. They never thought their companies would "sell out" and move businesses offshore whilst giving away domestic jobs to the lowest bidder even if the lowest bidder wasn't in the country legally.
Don't blame me for the plight of these poor men. I feel sorry for them. I suspect they only talk about the last 15 years of work on their resume and don't put their college graduation date to fool the reader of their resume and then when they are brought in with all their white hair and wrinkles and bad backs, they are quickly dismissed by the 30 something hiring managers as out of touch and tired.
Quote:
Originally Posted by shaker281
This might be one of the weirdest threads I have ever seen. Does the OP have a history of posting on some agenda? Because it seems like he has a genuine empathy and is merely reporting on a truly depressing phenomenon that he has been observing.
The fact that a lot of of guys in their fifties might not update their professional apparel often enough is basically true and they fact these job seekers are disillusioned and pessimistic of a good outcome is certainly believable. So, what is up with all the negative feedback? Did I miss something here?
It's even worse if you're in that age group and you get laid off from a factory or some kind of blue collar work that you've been doing for 30+ years.
Working one place and doing one task you're entire working life has been dead for awhile now. You have to constantly learn new skills and make moves whenever possible.
Listen, sonny. I've got shoes older than you. . . .and I was just hired into a highly-technical position at a large regional bank. I'm sure not ALL of them are downtrodden, "way-beyond-their-prime" schlubs. Sure, some might be, but the hiring manager really should take them one at a time, on a case-by-case basis.
Recently the organization I work for has been bringing lots of people in for job interviews. I see them sitting in their suits waiting in the lobby and so many of them recently seem so old. I hear from HR that many of the applicants who have come in are 55-65 years old and have been out of work for a long time. Many just seem so old and I wonder if they will ever work again in a professional full time job.
The hiring managers have not been to encouraging for these long term unemployed older men, so far none of them are being hired. Instead we are hiring people in their prime years (their 30s). There seems to be a preference for applicants in their 30s. Young enough to be full of energy and drive, but mature enough to understand business and how to behave in the office.
When I look at these sad older men with their 20 year old suit coats sitting in the lobby waiting to be rejected, my mind goes back to the 1990s, when they were likely very marketable and on top of their game. Did they ever realize it would come to this 20 years later?
I have considered myself to be in a forced retirement from IT. It begin, without my being aware of it, after a layoff @five years ago when I was smack dab in the age range you listed. The gimmicks we used to downplay our age were just that and I knew the discriminating interviewers could tell by reading a one-page resume sin some dates. At 55, I had energy and drive as I always had and I knew discrimination was hitting me dead on. Older people were being replaced by cheaper and younger kids.
I had the displeasure of interviewing a somewhat older gentleman for my team. But he was distressed about his situation and had a hint of anger (salary for the jobs I had were low). I couldn't hire him.
But it is what has happened to many of us. It began for me when my first Fortune 100 company had a lawsuit against them for getting rid of older people. It was clear discrimination and the company won.
I'm not in a comfortable position and my days of working are over. So, corporations outsource and insource from oversees to save money and they get rid of older people and replace them with younger people to save money.
Welcome to America and the new world. I can't use the word "brave" in there because that's not part of the new equation.
Don't blame me for the plight of these poor men. I feel sorry for them. I suspect they only talk about the last 15 years of work on their resume and don't put their college graduation date to fool the reader of their resume and then when they are brought in with all their white hair and wrinkles and bad backs, they are quickly dismissed by the 30 something hiring managers as out of touch and tired.
Well, the rule of thumb is to go back only ten years on a resume. I'm surprised you don't know this, you seem so well-informed.
And like another poster here, I, too, appreciate your *empathy* (cough).
You know what, though? I don't know anyone in their 50's, and even 60's, who have had trouble finding work. Perhaps this is a regional issue, or just a fantasy of yours.
We old people will hang onto our jobs until we fall over with our white hair and wrinkles and bad backs and, by then, our fifty year old over coats. You know why? To screw people who are younger. We want to make sure you're even sadder than you think we are.
Is it always raining outside when these men are waiting to be rejected? And do they have a wrinkled newspaper tucked under their arm and are they carrying a black briefcase? Do they smell of liver?
Totally agreed older workers who are down on their luck can also depress everyone else. The situation is depressing.
The twenty year old coats aren't doing them any favors.
I once new this very old man who lived in a rundown one bedroom apartment. He was a milti-millionaire. Many of those older guys most likely are not down on their luck but still want to work and continue to save like they've saved their whole lives. Many elders live below their means---and a 20 year old coat for many was purchased what seemed like---yesterday.
I once new this very old man who lived in a rundown one bedroom apartment. He was a milti-millionaire. Many of those older guys most likely are not down on their luck but still want to work and continue to save like they've saved their whole lives. Many elders live below their means---and a 20 year old coat for many was purchased what seemed like---yesterday.
Let me clarify what living our means really means to me. I'll start with what used to be the norm and we're two people but I made a bit more than my partner. Some of #2 apply to #1.
1. Lets say that I made it to retirement in a more "retirement" range, so I'd be @66. I don't know in this lack of an economy how much I would've been able to save because I lived in NY and everything is wayyy expensive. I'm guessing my life will expire in my early to mid 70s. I need less than ten years worth of money to get through those times. They likely would've been easier but, hey, one never knows.
2. I left work five years ago. I was 55ish. That took off about 11 years of a working life. I have money from working but it has to last until we both die. Prices are skyrocketing. Products are made to break sooner, so people will buy replacements. Medical garbage insurance goes up tremendously each year. (Not something I had to be concerned about while working.)
I'm not psychic but need a starting point. I look at my parents and when they died but it does not mean I will actually die in the average range they did. Income is limited and rather fixed (there's some fluctuation). I know how much we have but I can't predict future expenditures because there are so many variables in the economy that we have to tread carefully.
I believe, therefore, that you cannot say elders live below their means because we can't predict how much we'll need and for how long. My sis-in-law helped out an elderly guy a lot. She just does things to help people and is one of the better grounded people I know. He had millions. He lived frugally. How can you not. Rhetorical.
Hope this makes some sense.
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