Wednesday, 25 January 2012
Statistics again highlight over 45s discrimination
Age Discrimination Commissioner, Susan Ryan said that figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics yesterday again highlight the pressures that face mature age workers in trying to stay in or re-enter the workforce.
“The Bureau’s Job Search Experience Australia 2011 figures report that a staggering 18% of unemployed people aged 45 years and over found the main reason they had difficulty finding work was because they were considered too old by employers,” said Commissioner Ryan.
“In a country where we are constantly being told there are skills shortages, this finding is an indictment on the mindset of many people making recruitment decisions,” said Commissioner Ryan. “It highlights that we have to move urgently away from the discriminatory thinking that 45 means people are ready for the employment scrap heap.”
Ms Ryan said there was absolutely no evidence that most older people – certainly not people aged as young as 45 – fell into the age-based stereotypes such as being slower, less technologically savvy, less flexible or less trainable.
“In most cases, it is simply age discrimination to say that a person is too old to undertake the duties of a job,” Commissioner Ryan said. “Employers need to be aware that the main criterion for employing a person should be merit.”
Ms Ryan said that, instead of reinforcing the damaging stereotypes against mature age workers, employers should see the economic advantages of widening the pool for potential employees to include those older workers who are capable and experienced.
“On top of creating financial and personal problems for these discarded older people, relegating people to the unemployment scrap heap, simply because of their age, adds to the economic imposts on our country in terms of welfare dependency and the costs of the associated mental health issues of being out of work.”
Commissioner Ryan said we need to celebrate as best practice those forward-thinking employers who demonstrate good, non-discriminatory employment policy and make productive use of all their workforce, regardless of age.
Ms Ryan said employers should remember that a great many of the world’s most successful business people, politicians and entertainers are over 45.
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