Age discrimination facts:
Ageism remains a significant challenge in the Australian workforce for the 50+ year olds. Despite the presence of national and state laws that declare ageism illegal (Age discrimination Act 2004 1), it persists throughout Australian society.
As stated in Ageing in the Workforce 2021 report2; 20.7% of workers aged over 50 has encountered age discrimination in the workplace. This is a slightly higher rate than in Europe where it is 17% of workers over 50.
The 2023 AHRI older worker survey 8, provides interesting insights into HR professionals’ attitudes and behaviours towards older workers. Only 25% of participants stated they were open to hiring people aged 65 and over, while slightly more than half (56%) were similarly receptive to hiring those in the 50-64 age bracket, Disconcertingly, 18% explicitly stated they were entirely unwilling to hire individuals aged 65 and over. These findings underline the persistence of age-related biases in recruitment processes.
Up to 30% of Australian employers are still reluctant to hire workers over 50 because of incorrect assumptions, according to the Australian Human Rights Commission 4. Assumptions such as senior candidates have an unwillingness to learn, difficulties adapting to new technology, will only accept high salaries or won’t stay long term at the job.
What strategies can hiring managers and recruiters employ to fight age discrimination?
Australian Human Rights Commission’s Age Discrimination Commissioner, The Hon Dr Kay Patterson AO said: “Many older workers can offer the knowledge, skills, and wisdom that businesses are currently seeking. Employers just need to shift their perspective, trust the data and stop buying into myths about older workers.”3
We can all take steps to educate ourselves and minimize discrimination in the workplace and during hiring processes.
In our experience mature and experienced professionals often thrive in their roles thanks to their extensive experience and developed skill sets. Like all individuals they contribute unique perspectives and bring a high level of commitment that can greatly benefit any organisation. As per Aaron Raby, leadership development coach and host of the UMass Global webinar, “Leading Across Generations,”, multigenerational workforces are not only more productive, but also have less turnover than those without age diversity.
Consequently, stop holding onto various assumptions about people of a certain age:
- Remove age bias from job ads; Ensure that the language you use isn’t inadvertently discriminatory. Don’t advertise for “digital natives” or “millennials wanted”.
- Stay away from age-related interview questions:
- What year did you graduate from college?
- Will it bother you that many employees are younger than you?
- How do you feel about working under a young manager?
- Use anonymous screening; a “blind” process where socio-demographic information is removed from job applications to reduce bias. A simple way is to assign a team member who isn’t involved in hiring to anonymise candidate’s information.
The focus should be to encourage diverse workforce. As a recruitment and talent search agency, we source candidates based on how they present, their attitude, the energy they bring, their enthusiasm, skills and values. We have observed that being in one’s 20s does not guarantee being energetic and dynamic. Inversely, being in one’s 60s does not necessarily mean being lethargic and apathetic.
What the future holds for 50+ workers:
According to official data (Employing and Retaining older Workers, Australian HR Institute)5, the participation rate of individuals aged 55 and older in Australia, has been on the rise from 44.9% to 69.4%. since the mid-1990s.
The shift in demographics amplifies the need to be more inclusive of older workers: by 2050, around one quarter of all Australians will be aged 65 years and over, with the proportion of younger Australians declining7. With enhanced health prospects and insufficient retirement funds, workers will want, and may need, to remain in the workforce for longer 6.
Policy makers in Australia should examine global practices to boost senior recruitment and implement similar strategies. Examples:
- UK; Baroness Altmann, a leading UK pensions expert, and political campaigner, proposed to follow the 3 days-week Swedish model and adapt it for senior workers. She also proposed providing tax incentives to employers who hire mature workers.
- Sweden: there are specialised employment agencies that specifically cater to the needs of older individuals.
- Iceland: the government has recently drawn up a policy to help older workers stay even longer in the workforce. Older workers can gradually switch to less physically demanding jobs and perhaps slightly less responsibility and at a slower pace: – in a mutual understanding of their own and the company’s preferences.
- Norway: The upper age limit for protection against dismissal has been increased from 70 to 72 years in the private sector to be extended to the public sector.
Needless to say, there are solutions to eradicate age discrimination in recruitment/workforce and a national effort is needed given the exponential growth of the senior population.
In our experience good employers do not rely on government policy settings. Instead, they actively engage with their employees on an individual basis and adapt to their specific needs. They recognise the value that experienced staff members bring to their organisation.
Note:
In this article we didn’t approach the subject of gendered ageism: affecting women in their 40s and beyond as this would lead to an entirely different chapter.
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- Office of Parliamentary Counsel, Canberra : “Australia Age Discrimination Act 2004″, 2017, pdf
https://adsdatabase.ohchr.org/IssueLibrary/AUSTRALIA_Age%20Discrimination%20Act%202004.pdf
- Australian Seniors: “The Australian senior series: Ageing in the workforce 2021”, 2021
- Australian Human right Commission: Fact or Fiction: Stereotypes of older Australians, 2013, The Hon Suzan RyanAO
- Australian Rights Commission: “Too old to work at 50”, 2018, conducted by the Australian HR Institute supported by the Australian Human Rights Commission.
- Australian HR Institute in partnership of the Australian Human Rights Commission: “Employing and Retaining older Workers”, 2023
- Jacob Sheahan, Wil Dim, Ian de Vere :“Enabling an ageing workforce: Using design to innovate the workplace and empower older workers”, 2024
- Australian Government: “Australia to 2050: future challenges” 2010
https://treasury.gov.au/sites/default/files/2019-03/IGR_2010_Overview.pdf
- Australian Human Rights commission : “Ageism keeping older people out of the workforce”, 2023