What to do about age discrimination?
If you feel that you have an age discrimination case you need to talk with your local Federal office of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. They have a very good process to help you determine if you have a case under the law. They will advise you and take action if they feel you have a good case.
People always say that you’ll never get another job in your field if you invoke the law. If your experiencing consistent age discrimination, what have you got to loose.
If you’re out of work, you have plenty of time on your hands. Get involved in government. Learn how to push the buttons on your elected representatives and their staffs. Older people vote in large numbers. Get your elected officials to make promises and then hold their feet to the fire.
Remember when WalMart tried to take the insurance settlement money from their former employee who was confined to a nursing home for the rest of her life? WalMart had every right under the law to get that money. However, the price they had to pay in terrible publicity was prohibitive and they let it go. You can do the same thing with agest companies. You may be within the law, but that doesn’t mean people will deal with you.
On the personal side, I went back to school at 51 and became a computer programmer. I worked for another ten years on that education. What can you do to change your skills profile?
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POSTED IN: Boomer Talk, Jobs, Work
10 opinions for What to do about age discrimination?
Rich
Apr 22, 2008 at 2:58 pm
I’ve taken up writing as a second career. There is little money for me to make on the web yet, but I’ve sold a story to a small print publication. It will take some time to improve my writing skills and create quality published pieces before I can make a living at writing.
I still need that job in a Hardware store, or Walmart or whatever in the meantime. These are the jobs for which I don’t even get an interview.
Rich
Another twist on age discrimination: early retirement “incentives”
Apr 22, 2008 at 4:38 pm
[…] only do older workers not get hired( as Jim and I talked about in previous posts), they get discriminated against in retirement benefits. […]
Ren Garcia
Apr 22, 2008 at 5:31 pm
A wealth of experience / information / contacts in senior citizens is not being appreciated and utilized by businesses. One example I can think of is: a neighborhood branch of a bank with a senior citizen branch manager could tap into the goodwill & trust he has built up in his neighborhood over the years.
Another twist on age discrimination: early retirement “incentives” | money news blog
Apr 22, 2008 at 10:37 pm
[…] only do older workers not get hired( as Jim and I talked about in previous posts), they get discriminated against in retirement benefits. […]
Miranda
Apr 23, 2008 at 9:22 am
I agree that we are not utilizing the qualities of boomers. Indeed, it seems that we discount age, despite the fact that people are aging better, and doing more as they age, than ever before. Our youth-obsessed culture is missing out on great opportunities to learn and become enriched.
National Small Business Week - April 21-25: Older business owners
Apr 23, 2008 at 4:15 pm
[…] if you are a victim of age discrimination, start your own business. Tags: baby boomers, National Small Business Week, SCORE, small […]
National Small Business Week - April 21-25: Older business owners | money news blog
Apr 24, 2008 at 12:40 am
[…] if you’re a victim of age discrimination, begin your own […]
Michael L. Gooch
Apr 29, 2008 at 5:51 am
Inappropriate behavior and off-hand remarks will sneak up to bite you. Have you ever been blindsided by disparaging remarks made by your management team? The managers don’t realize at the time that they are in a discrimination mode. I detail these likely events in my management book, Wingtips with Spurs. Usually they will ‘get it’ when their depositions start. When you hear the following phrases, stop the offender, offer some education, and hope to goodness no one else heard them. If it happens again with the same person, it may be time to sell the cow. The courts and juries will decide if the remarks are ‘stray comments’ or direct evidence of a discrimination mindset.
• “We need sharp, young people.”
• “We need people who can come in early and stay late.”
• “They’re dinosaurs.”
• “They’re too old to learn something new”
• “We want employees who are young, lean, and mean.”
• “They wouldn’t be able to keep up with the fast company
growth.”
• “We’re looking for longevity.”
• “We need some young blood in this department.”
If a manager allows a culture that tolerates remarks such as the ones above, then the manager will probably get what he or she is asking for. The great leader will remind management on a frequent basis that they should never forget silence is often the best answer. Michael L. Gooch, SPHR http://www.michaellgooch.com
Another twist on age discrimination: early retirement “incentives†| money news blog
May 1, 2008 at 3:13 pm
[…] only do older workers not get hired( as Jim and I talked about in previous posts), they get discriminated against in retirement benefits. […]
National Small Business Week - April 21-25: Older business owners | money news blog
May 1, 2008 at 3:15 pm
[…] if you are a victim of age discrimination, begin your own […]
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