Ageism :: Age Discriminationg Work Research Essays

Ageism No matter how talented or experienced one employee may be over another, workplace history has demonstrated more than just a few times that the younger candidate is often the one to win the promotion. Age discrimination has become more than a minor inconvenience throughout the twentieth century; indeed, the issue has become such a hot potato within the workplace that laws have been forced into existence as a means by which to address the problem. In order to help protect those who stand to be singled out and let go because of the unfairness of ageism, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) was designed with the older employee in mind. The issue at hand is that companies are not willing to look beyond their aging workforce, choosing instead to push them out of the technological loop rather than attempting to incorporate them as valuable assets. In our culture, the general perception is that with youth comes energy, imagination, and innovation. With age comes decreasing interest, lack of innovation and imagination, and a lessening of the quality of the person (Bennett, 2001, p. 410-411). Job seekers are reporting age discrimination beginning as early as the mid-thirties. How can this be addressed? What options are there for those of us considered "old" by hiring managers and companies? The biggest issue, and one which is hard to address, is the perception that older workers are not as capable or as qualified as younger counterparts. Age discrimination continues to damage our society, reducing both the incomes and the self-confidence of millions of Americans. A Harris survey, conducted in 1989, reported that one million workers aged 50 to 64 believed that they would be forced to retire before they were ready. Most of this group, anticipating an unwanted early retirement, said they would prefer to work for years longer. Another Harris survey, conducted in 1992, found that 5.4 million older Americans--one in seven of those 55 and older who were not working at that time--were willing to work but could not find a suitable job (Administration on Aging). Age discrimination can be obvious, such as a bank hiring a pretty, inexperienced young woman as a teller instead of an older woman with a strong background in similar jobs. But it's the subtler forms of age discrimination that may have the most powerful effect on cutting short the productive years of Americans--the law partner who