The Effects of Age Discrimination

The Effects of Age Discrimination in the Workplace

The quality of life of older people is influenced by their level of participation and activeness in society as a whole, especially their capacity to stay productive. This means that the elderly population has a wide variety of characteristics to which they can be compared in order to determine the effect this population has on employability. Discrimination in the workplace based on race, sexuality, disability, or gender has long been considered illegal. Many individuals, though, are prejudiced based on their age and it is considered that they have nothing to add to the organization. On the opposite, older people have a wealth of wisdom to share. The baby boomers have learned in the job and therefore possess a broad range of knowledge and expertise of handling various tasks, and when the companies do away with them, they risk losing this wealth. The paper will, therefore, explore the effects of age discrimination in the workplace. The paper hypothesizes that age discrimination impacts negatively on the performance of the organization and consequential profitability. Ageism and age discrimination will get considered from three broad perspectives; myths about ageing employees, their level of productivity and sector (Bayl-Smith & Griffin, 2014).

Age Discrimination in the Workforce

The older workers have spent some time with the organization and therefore possess so much experience that the new recruits do not have. In most cases, this ageing personnel become victims of layoffs when companies retrench. Some get moved to smaller offices where they may not be comfortable because of their age. An old workforce is moreover not exempt from additional kinds of discrimination like race, ethnicity and sex (Bayl-Smith & Griffin, 2014). Discrimination based on age in the workstation also gets propagated by several factors which will get considered in this article by analyzing several cases in IT especially the Google Age Discrimination Case. The employee should, however, prove that discrimination based on age before a court of law (Shah & Kleiner, 2005).

Effects on Different Sectors

Each sector has a criterion for profiling and grouping employees as old or still useful in helping the attainment of its goals. For instance, the information technology industry has been constructed on the premises that young workers are innovative and creative. The ageing workers become associated with the inability to adapt to the changing technological aspects. The retrenchment of these population will see the organization lose some of its most experienced workforces. Additionally, the cost of hiring and training new employees is considerably high for the company to bear. Age discrimination does not only attract replacement expenses but as well the aggrieved members of the staff may seek damages in a court of law if they can prove that they were laid off due to their age (Shah & Kleiner, 2005).

Reduced Effectiveness and Productivity

The inability of the ageing workforce to move with the pace of the evolving business environment becomes greatly attributed to reduced effectiveness. A reduced flexibility and efficiency lead to dropping productivity and consequential reduced profitability. Prejudice, discriminatory practices, and actions that perpetuate stereotyping of the old employees reduce their motivation. Age stereotyping is not only motivated by the organizations but as well enshrined in legislation. Several countries across the world have caps on the maximum retirement age (Veldon, 2013).

Research Methodology

So as to establish the effects of age discrimination, the article will conduct an extensive literature review of scholarly articles on the issue. Primary data will be collected through sampling and interviewing and completion of comprehensive questionnaires. The research hence will sample at least 20 employees above the age of 40. The participants will be distributed across five sectors of the economy associated with significant technological evolution. The data obtained will be summarized in tables and other graphical tools for analysis and conclusion drawing.

References

Bayl-Smith, P. H., & Griffin, B. (2014). Age discrimination in the workplace: identifying as a late-career worker and its relationship with engagement and intended retirement age. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 44(9), 588-599. doi:10.1111/jasp.12251

Shah, P., & Kleiner, B. (2005). New developments concerning age discrimination in the workplace. Equal Opportunities International, 24(5/6), 15-23. doi:10.1108/02610150510788114

Veldon, B. (2013). Ageism and age discrimination in the workplace. CRIS - Bulletin of the Centre for Research and Interdisciplinary Study, 1(2). doi:10.2478/cris-2013-0008