Ageism in the Workplace is as Obvious and Prevalent as We All Fear

Ageism is arguably the most socially acceptable form of discrimination in the workplace. As more and more people re-enter the workforce following the coronavirus pandemic, it's important to understand, identify and eliminate ageist practices and behaviors as we strive for an all-inclusive workplace.

There is currently an uphill battle in addressing the role ageism plays in day-to-day work as few workplace training seminars exist to educate and safeguard against ageism while limited HR policies exist to protect individuals who report instances of ageism.

According to new research from WerkLabs, the data and insights division of The Mom Project, due to the seemingly acceptable prevalence of ageism in the workplace, 95% of survey participants who reported experiencing ageism admitted to having consciously tried to physically conceal or mask the appearance of their age in interviews.

"Anything from language used in job descriptions to a hiring manager telling a prospective employee he or she is 'overqualified' can be considered age discrimination," said Dr. Pam Cohen, President of WerkLabs and the study's lead author. "Our goal with this study was to not only identify what constitutes ageism but also where employees are witnessing it the most in order to provide organizations with actionable solutions to overcome and prevent this illegal discrimination."

In a survey of more than 700 professionals over the age of 40, among those who indicated experiencing ageism in their careers, 75% experienced that discrimination during their job search, while 53% indicated ageism within their workplace.

Alarmingly, ageism is showing as most acute in the fastest-growing future of work industries such as financial services (85%), advertising and marketing (84%), and technology (81%).

Unfortunately for many potential job candidates, ageism can start as early as the application process whether they are forced to include a graduation year, limit their entire work experience to the past X amount of roles or years, or simply from the language utilized in job descriptions and recruiting materials, including phrases like "We are an extremely young company" or "We move really fast around here."

According to one surveyed professional, "There's an assumption that I wouldn't want the roles. The statement that I would be 'bored' (which is code word for 'too old'), and lack of giving me a chance despite many years of future availability and a willingness to learn."

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