Addressing Ageism in the Workforce: A Deep Dive into the Current Landscape
As our population ages, the workforce is becoming more diverse in terms of age, with a blend of eager young professionals just starting and older individuals with years of experience under their belts. However, ageism remains an issue, affecting both ends of the age spectrum but hitting older professionals particularly hard.
Understanding the Demographics
The current workforce demographics reveal some intriguing trends. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the workforce has seen a decrease in younger employees by 9.9% 1. Meanwhile, the number of employees aged 25-54 has increased by 4.6%, and those aged 55 and older have seen a 7.6% increase, indicating a steady influx of older individuals into the workforce 1.
The Reality of Ageism
Ageism in the workplace refers to the poor treatment and denial of career opportunities due to an individual's age. This may include being denied a job, fired, or viewed as unfit for a promotion due to age 2. This issue affects both younger and older workers. A survey indicated that workers between 18 and 34 are 13% more likely to face age-based discrimination in the workplace than workers aged 55 and older. However, the consequences of ageism are often more severe for older professionals 2.
Despite the invaluable knowledge and experience older workers bring, they are often overlooked in favor of younger, less experienced workers. This happens even though older employees have been proven to be more engaged and more likely to stay with companies long-term 2.
Barriers and Challenges
The challenges faced by older professionals are multifold. Increasing financial pressures and insufficient retirement savings mean many cannot retire at the conventional retirement age and must continue working. This exposes them to a higher risk of ageism in the workplace 2.
Unfortunately, ageism remains a persistent issue despite legal protections such as the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 and the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. An alarmingly high percentage of older workers (62%) believe they face age discrimination regularly, and over 93% assert that ageism in the workplace is common 2.
Tips for Older Professionals
When building your resume, only capture the most recent 10-15 years of experience. Although this is a general rule for anyone creating a resume, it also helps those in the workforce longer to mask their age. Additional things to consider include:
Removing dates from your education
Removing outdated technology or tools (i.e., Lotus Notes)
Updating your resume’s formatting so it doesn’t look like it was created in 1990 on a typewriter (this includes a modern font - get rid of Times New Roman!)
Getting a Gmail email address. An email address ending in yahoo.com (or god forbid .aol) is a sure sign you are older.
Stop putting two spaces after a sentence. (It was just four years ago that I was also writing with two spaces after a sentence. So don’t feel bad.)
It is important to remember that ageism is illegal. If you feel like you are being discriminated against because of your age, you should not hesitate to report it. If you think your resume may be part of your job search headaches, let’s talk.
