Over-50s face exclusion

Employers are failing to identify and tackle potential age bias in their recruitment processes, with most employers interviewed not seeing it as a “problem” in their organisation, according to a new report by the Centre for Ageing Better (CfAB).

Some employers interviewed held negative views of older people, such as older workers “having poor IT skills” or looking “worn-out”. Consequently, the CfAB warns, older workers made redundant in the months ahead risk being shut out of employment.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, unemployment among over-50s has risen by a third since 2019.

And based on the number of workers furloughed in August, the CfAB estimates that more than 400,000 over-50s could be made redundant when the furlough scheme ends.

There are fears that ageism in the recruitment process could exacerbate an unemployment crisis for the age group in the year ahead.

The report, Shut out: how employers and recruiters are overlooking the talents of over 50s workers, found that despite many employers stating diversity and inclusion were important to them, few had strategies or approaches specifically aimed at making the recruitment process more diverse and inclusive in the context of age.

If employers did consider age in recruitment, it was often in the context of recruiting young workers.

The report outlines practical steps employers could take to make recruitment more age-inclusive as well as actions to avoid.

https://www.ageing-better.org.uk/sites/default/files/2021-01/Shut-out-how-employers-and-recruiters-overlooking-talents-older-workers.pdf