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Submitted via IRC for ErnestTBass
Fifty-year-old job seekers are up to three times less likely to be selected for interview than younger applicants with less relevant experience, a major new study shows.
Research found that applications from 28-year-old white men were three times more likely to get an interview than those sent by 50-year-old black women, and over twice as likely as those sent by 50-year-old white women.
Academics from Anglia Ruskin and Cyprus universities applied for 811 sales and service jobs in England, sending in applications from fictional British job seekers.
One was a 28-year-old white man with nine years' experience relevant to the job, and the others were from 50-year-old white and black men and women with 31 years' relevant experience. All the fictional applicants said they were employed at the time, and their age and ethnic background were noted on their CVs.
Researchers found that applications from young white men were:
- 1.8 times more likely to be selected for interview than ones from 50-year-old white men
- 2.3 times more likely to be selected than those from 50-year-old white women
- 2.6 times more likely to be selected than those from 50-year-old black men
- 3 times more likely to be selected than those from 50-year-old black women.
Professor Nick Drydakis, Dr. Anna Paraskevopoulou of the School of Business and Law, Anglia Ruskin University, and Dr. Vasiliki Bozani of Economics Research Centre, University of Cyprus, also found that the young men were accepted for interview for jobs that paid more highly, around £19,863, than the ones that 50-year-old men were invited to, around £17,552, 13% lower.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Monday April 29 2019, @05:55PM
Never had any problem landing jobs until somewhere around age 45. Now 50, I find there is a very real sense of ageism. One recruiter told me it's not age but rather political and that larger companies list job descriptions requiring combinations of skills they know few US candidates would have. This is done to create the illusion of a talent shortage, which is then used to justify their request for additional H-1B hires. It's fucking depressing to go from feeling like a productive member of society with useful skills to complete irrelevancy. Whatever the reason, it has seriously impacted other areas of my life and I have all but withdrawn from everything. Family, friends and neighbors are sympathetic but cannot help and now avoid me. To me, it feels like everyone has distanced themselves because I'm no longer as good as them. There's a reason suicide rates rise sharply in my age group and it's something I find myself thinking about more often than can possibly be normal. I will not spend my last days losing everything I've worked for, living homeless and hungry.