Ageism in the US job market is going to start affecting people in their 40s

[stopbush]

At age 65, I have lots of first-hand knowledge of the rampant ageism that exists in the US job market. I have felt its effects directly for at least the last 15 years, and I am not alone. Believe me, it is discussed openly in places like the AARP magazine which dedicated a recent issue to the subject.

Soon, 30-million+ Americans will be unemployed. Young, part-time minimum-wage workers will make up a good chunk of the jobless, but so will older workers who have moved up the ladder and who are making decent salaries. These workers - unfortunately - will be prime candidates for devastating job losses for a number of reasons:

1. It’s an employer’s market. Lots of unemployed people means more candidates for every available job. Employers can pick and choose, and offer lower wages and benefits than they would in a competitive market

2. Business closings. Fewer places to work, more employees who need work

3. Automation. More high-paying jobs lost to robotics. More mid- and low-level jobs lost to off-shore call centers

4. Lack of government $upport for the unemployed and long-term unemployed. Leads to workers accepting lower wages out of desperation, with nowhere to turn but the cheap labor job market. Result: lower wages all around.

5. Chronic debt (college loans/cc debt, etc) coupled with newly acquired debt from loss of income/livelihood due to the pandemic negatively effects workers’ ability to get out of the debt hole in which they find themselves.

All of this means that employers will prefer the cheapest labor they can find to do most of the work needed in the USA. There is no incentive to offer good wages and benefits. Expertise becomes devalued as automation takes over more and more aspects of doing business. And that means that age discrimination will begin to effect people at a much younger age as the job market struggles to recover from the pandemic, with regular jobs harder to find and decent jobs at a premium, simply because all things considered, the youngest (ie: cheapest) workers will fit the profile of what employers consider to be most-desirable in an employee.

[Wounded Bear]

1. It's already there...

Retired now, but 10-15 years ago I was trying to find work. Not a good time for me.

[Neema]

8. Yeah, I got laid off at the end of 2008, along with tons of other folks.

Freelancing saved me. I hope I never have to try to look for another full-time job. Time will tell. I still have 15 years before I can retire, at least.

[Brainstormy]

9. exactly my story

2008 rang the death knell for corporate employment. Our entire department was erased. without contract work my working career would have been over.

[Neema]

15. Are you still doing okay?

I actually wanted to go freelance years prior to 2008, but couldn't figure out how to build up enough business to quit my full-time job. The few months of severance, along with unemployment, along with a bit of luck, allowed me to build up a solid income before I was out of money. So for me it was the best thing that could have happened.

It remains to be seen how it will work out this time. So far I'm doing okay. And a big contract I won in February is still going forward, just delayed a bit (I was assured the entire length of the contract was pre-funded so there's no risk of losing it). So I'm hoping once things start moving again I'll be back to the usual amount of work. But it feel impossible to predict at this point.

And if trump steal the WH again in November, there are a whole new set of things to worry about.

[Ilsa]

3. Another reason for gradually creating medicare for all,

a basic income, and taxing corporations hard since they no longer will need to offer expensive insurance benefits.

[Hortensis]

4. :) Coincidentally, more late-learners get serious about voting then.

We have the means to do wonderful things, to make the future far better than even we older DUers could have imagined when we were young and born into the New Deal era.

The same technological advances that're eliminating jobs have multiplied national (and planetary) wealth a number of times over now, healthy lifespans average much longer, and in future only those who love to work long hours will need to.

We will make it happen by voting for those who will continue the advances and progression we inherited from our parents.

[exboyfil]

5. At 56 my 20 year term life insurance policy came up

At $6K/yr. for renewal, I told my wife that I am dropping the coverage. I still have 2x my salary with my employer. I told her if I lost my job, I was economically dead anyway. I have my last engineering job.

[roamer65]

6. Very true.

Glad I don’t have dependents.

Right now it’s tough enough to just make sure I can retire decently.

[Neema]

7. This is why I hope I never have to look for a regular job again.

I've still got at least 15 years left before I can retire. I'm a freelancer, and most of my clients are in other states. I do most of my work online. Though I work for myself (hiring sub-contractors as needed), I think people see me as a business owner and therefore my age isn't as limiting. I believe I'm seen as an expert in the field and that helps me. I am also damn good at what I do.

But if I needed to look for a full-time position within a company, I think the reaction would be very different. If I got an interview at all, it would be for a management position (which I would hate because that would mean sitting in meetings all day and not doing anything creative). But I'd be lowballed because of all my years as a contractor. I'd never be interviewed for a creative position because of all the reasons age is a problem: need too much money, over-qualified (i.e., would know more than my managers), wouldn't fit in with the "culture."

I started freelancing back in 2008 the last time the economy went to hell. Places weren't hiring, but companies still needed work done. As I freelancer, I was able to fill those needs. So my business thrived. I hope I can continue doing that during these turbulent times. I'm currently working at about 50% my normal volume, but it's enough to get by.

Fingers crossed for everyone struggling out there.

[CrispyQ]

10. People want to live to be as old as possible but we don't value old people.

Wasn't it when Congressional dems were hammering out the ACA that some repub said that old people had a duty to die? And they have the audacity to say that we want to kill Grandma? They have never been pro-life and the media never calls them on it.

[PasadenaTrudy]

13. I sure don't. n/t

[Wellstone ruled]

11. Reality coming at us is,

our present day Assembly so called manufacturers are going to eliminate tens of thousands of human assemblers for Robotic assemblers. And that picture will start to come into focus in the next few weeks. So those Process Engineers and Electrical Mechanical folks whom are on the Younger end of these fields will be busy. And as usual,the older folks will be left by the road side.

And for those whom did Face Time Sales,yah,hunch is,those days are slipping away fast. Remote working in the last two plus months has changed the work a day world for ever.

Hang on kiddies,this next ride is going to be a ugly one.

[Buckeyeblue]

12. I prefer to hire a little older

I don't find that Millenials have good problem solving skills. They are great with technology. But often take a pause to really understand the information they are given. They also get bored quickly and are quick to move on.

[JCMach1]

14. When I was young Boomers only hired people like them

Now that I I am in my 50's administrators only hire newly minted Ph.D.'s ... Consequently, I can't even work in my field even before Covid.

Gen X in academia... Ask me how many ways we have been screwed over the years.

Or not... Don't really want to rehash all the disappointment...

[MoonlitKnight]

16. "Overqualified"

Code for too old.

I have already encountered that in my job hunt.

[Kahuna]

17. I'm 66 and can relate to and attest to every word you wrote. nt

[GoCubsGo]

18. I can vouch for all of that.

It's a large part of the reason I never recovered from the Bush recession. I was in my mid-40's when I got laid off. It was right on the cusp of the downturn. I came close a few times, and willing to take a huge pay cut, but they still went with younger hires. After about five years of watching my career circle the bowl, I gave up looking.

[Efilroft Sul]

19. When I was 47, I got bounced out of the ad industry.

It didn't matter that I helped make clients more successful. It didn't matter how much I bring to the table. It didn't matter how many awards we won of which I was a major contributor. What did matter was that I was going grey up top and the staff was growing younger by the day. That, and I was probably considered a heathen by my agency's Born Again owner.

So now I've become a hired gun and charge top dollar to the industry that wanted nothing to do with me as a full-timer. I've done this now for five years. Hopefully, I can keep on tap-dancing and razzle-dazzling like Billy Flynn.

[Tink41]

20. Start??

I'm 53 it started about 13 yrs ago. This is nothing new.