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I'll try to give a short answer so ths engaging thread an end:
Yes, if it shows career progression relating to the position you're applying to; otherwise no.
You are customizing your resume for each position you're applying to, correct?
Yes, for someone had a traditional background and was 60 years old they would not advertise that they were working in the 1970s because of age discrimination. But what if they had not worked for 15 years and they are now trying to re-enter their old field? They have no jobs, volunteer work or consulting to put on their resumes for the last fifteen years. They only employment is way back in the 20th Century. Should they list and describe these really old jobs?
Yes, for someone had a traditional background and was 60 years old they would not advertise that they were working in the 1970s because of age discrimination. But what if they had not worked for 15 years and they are now trying to re-enter their old field? They have no jobs, volunteer work or consulting to put on their resumes for the last fifteen years. They only employment is way back in the 20th Century. Should they list and describe these really old jobs?
They did absolutely nothing for the last 15 years that could translate to experience? I find that very difficult to believe. However, they need to be creative. They need to build a resume format that focuses on what they know and what they can do today rather than the time frames they previously held their positions.
What is their field? Accounting? Finance? Medical? Engineering? They will more than likely have to start at the bottom of the totem pole. As long as they still demonstrably have the basic skills and understanding of the field, they should be able to get their foot in the door somewhere.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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I probably answered this before in a previous thread, but:
When I applied for the job here at age 57 in 2009 I listed work that I did from 1975-1992, which combined with work I did from 1993-2008 to give me a unique combination of skills and experience for the position. Now here for 5 years I have been promoted twice so it worked out well. There is no need to worry about age discrimination, if the employer doesn't want older workers they will find out anyway. In many cases, like here, the many years of experience may be just what they need to help restore a disfunctional work group, or take it to the next level. If that old experience is not related to the position you are applying for, there is no need to go back more than 10 years.
Bottom line from my own experience both as an employee who was in the workforce for 50 years and as an employer who read countless applications and resumés from older candidates.
Your last 10 years are key whatever you did.
Relevant details of work prior to that which are in any way applicable to the current position being applied for should be included. If you worked for several different companies over a couple of past decades in essentially the same position you can list those as a "lump" both in dates and titles, i.e. "1975-1995, Project Engineer responsible for blah blah blah, specifics available upon request".
This is really common sense stuff which, as a past employee with several positions under your belt and - according to you - in some cases being in a supervisory/hiring capacity - you should know. It's not complicated.
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