Lookig for work remember age discrimination is illegal

Those of us who want to or need to work can experience ageism and stereotypes when we start looking for work. Despite evidence to the contrary, older people who want to work are often perceived as physically weak, slower, and more susceptible to absence from the job. However, older workers vary in these work performance characteristics just as workers of younger ages do.

I listened as the radio announcer talked to an employment advisor for seniors looking for work. It was an interesting conversation and one that I had when I placed young students into jobs in my other life. The counsellor talked about all of the positive attributes that seniors bring to the job and I thought these could be said of any age group. The reporter asked the councillor if what they were saying was based on science/fact or just his opinion. I was disappointed when the councillor said it was only their opinion. The reporter shut him down by saying “I am sure that 20-year old’s would say the same thing about their skills and attitudes, thanks for phoning.”

Ageism is subtle, check-out clerks may ask robust seniors whether they need help with their groceries. Store clerks repeat instructions and raise their voices on the implicit presumption that seniors are hard of hearing or senescent. These types of well-intended social interactions can be experienced as patronizing and can create doubts for retirees about our competence as well as lead to feelings of inferiority. “Forever Young” advertising (e.g., anti-aging cream) is another negative influence on the psyche of older citizens. It also plays into myths of age when employers go to hire. Ageism is against the law, but many seniors will be denied a job based on “suitability” which is, in my view, a code word for age discrimination.

There are not a lot of job agencies in Canada for those over 65 who have retired. Some of the big agencies allow you to post looking for jobs for senior citizens but the jobs that come up are not specifically designed for seniors. Jobs should be easy to find in our current market, but they are still hard for seniors as age discrimination is in full force in most Canadian business operations. I know that there are exceptions to this rule, and many seniors who want to work have found jobs, but I suspect these are not what they wanted when they started their search.