Is there discrimination against older people in the work force (jobs, companies)

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by Veronicka

What? What if someone needs a paycheck?

If you have a proven track record that shows what you can do, then you can find work if you are a valuable asset. It might be harder but what matters is results that cannot be ignored.

I watched someone work that one through. He had to be the best and show his work.

It depends on your industry and the job market.

I know plenty of retired and old people who have a license that is valuable. They aren't especially but they can get a job as long as they can crawl through the door.

There is discrimination of course but there are ways around it if you are very qualified.

Repel customers? What kind of customers? McDonald's customers? Old people might have wrinkles but they don't have pimples.

At 64 I'm making more than I ever did when younger, and enjoy the work more. It would be silly to take a 50% cut in income with just pension, 401k and SS at this point. I have very little contact with customers, and even when I do it's by email or phone, but our "customers" are commercial/industrial tenants and many are my age anyway. Our work depends on advanced skills that come with experience, so most new hires are in the 30-50 age group escept for the "entry level" jobs that only require 3-5 years.

[twowilldo]

Originally Posted by DorianRo

My company just had a cleansing of all the old guard and were forced out the door into early retirement. Some needed to go for sure.. But thats also ALOT Of experience that you just showed the door and a lot of success as well. Which would be ok if only for the little problem..... Who is there to replace them? Younger people with no experience or people far less qualified for the job?

A coworker and I were recently forced into retirement after 37 years at our jobs, each. We were hired literally one day apart in 1979. In fact, the entire department of 10 people were either fired, resigned due to abusive practices/frustration or were forced to retire. Once the original manager was fired (he was a very good person, hard-working and very bright... but his new boss didn't like him) the wheels began to spin.

It took 8 months for the new boss to find and bring in a 1st level manager who is/was so ADHD she could not even answer simple questions without losing her train of thought... she had to ask to have questions repeated all the time and even then could not make decisions or run the show. She had poor people skills, lied incessantly and had no marketable/useable abilities that were apparent to the rest of us. Her boss made it pretty clear he wanted people in the 30-ish age bracket, wanting a younger look and a more social, beer-swilling aspect of department culture. They made no bones about going out drinking after work each night and partying together on the weekends. We didn't want any part of that having families, spouses and lives, so they didn't want us either.

Cut to the chase... They have just hired a fourth person to do the work the two of us formerly did. It is design work and from what we are seeing on the website and other deliverables, there is an obvious lack of skill and talent. According to sources still at the company the dept. is failing miserably, not meeting deadlines, getting sideways with other dept. clients and the work is poor. The ADHD manager is already starting to fire her special people who haven't even been there for a year. Not my problem and honestly it brings me pleasure to watch them circle the drain.

I have to wonder why it is there are so many poor managers running companies into the ground these days? Is it because the newbies are jealous and afraid of the knowledge of the others that have been there so much longer?

[rocky1975]

If there is discrimination, then why are Millennials complaining about waiting for Boomers to retire? seems like if there was age discrimination, then this would not be a complaint

[twowilldo]

Originally Posted by rocky1975

If there is discrimination, then why are Millennials complaining about waiting for Boomers to retire? seems like if there was age discrimination, then this would not be a complaint

Rocky, I think it becomes discrimination only if the wishes of the millennials is acted upon by those who are able to make it happen and the activity can be proven without a doubt. In my case, the kids they backfilling my former dept. with were dumb enough to make discriminatory and ageist comments in front of other witnesses on multiple occasions; the manager (and her boss too) was too scatterbrained to tell them to keep their mouths shut. They were emboldened... until the papers were served. Oops!

I had just finished a Master's certificate that the company paid for most of it though, good timing on that one.

[Hemlock140]

Originally Posted by rocky1975

If there is discrimination, then why are Millennials complaining about waiting for Boomers to retire? seems like if there was age discrimination, then this would not be a complaint

People that have trouble finding a job, young or old, like to make excuses such as discrimination against the old or not enough boomers retiring, or even "fake" job postings, rather than admit that they just don't have the same education, skills, or experience as the person that beat them out for the jobs they applied to. We have had 2 retirements in my department in the last few weeks, ages 65 and 71. So far we have replaced the first, I don't know the age of the person hired but would guess 45.

[lookb4youcross]

Not really any place for me to drop in here, but I know when I was in my late teens early 20's I had not much of any luck with jobs, of course the people that were 50+ got a job like nothing. Basically I believe reverse age discrimination happens more.

[Klassyhk]

Originally Posted by Veronicka

What? What if someone needs a paycheck?

If you have a proven track record that shows what you can do, then you can find work if you are a valuable asset. It might be harder but what matters is results that cannot be ignored.

I watched someone work that one through. He had to be the best and show his work.

It depends on your industry and the job market.

I know plenty of retired and old people who have a license that is valuable. They aren't especially but they can get a job as long as they can crawl through the door.

There is discrimination of course but there are ways around it if you are very qualified.

Repel customers? What kind of customers? McDonald's customers? Old people might have wrinkles but they don't have pimples.

Not McDonald's customers in my town. There are more older workers then younger workers at my local McD's. I actually like it and apparently other customers do too as the store does good business. I think having older workers adds more respectability to those positions.

[pappjohn]

Many companies in the hi-tech industry including Gaagle, Miocroshift and Facecrap all avoid hiring old people. They'd rather hire young, foreigners.

[orionstars]

I'm in my late 20's and I'm pretty sure I experienced age discrimination already.

[Nanny Goat]

Some people discriminate against younger people. I've actually heard that--they don't want to hire younger people w/ kids-- so it can go both ways. Depends on person hiring.