Job applicants cease to be seen as a desirable hire by employers when they reach their mid-50s, according to new polling from our anti-ageism campaign Age Without Limits.
The general public think that the average age someone stops being seen as a desirable candidate for employers to hire is 55 – a full 11 years before state pension age.
More than one in three people (36%) think that job applicants stop being seen as a desirable candidate for employers at 50 or younger – including one in 12 (8%) who think that 40 is the cut-off point.
The age group most likely to think that someone stops being seen as a desirable candidate for employers to hire at the age of 50 or younger was the 45 to 54 age group (41%) – a possible reflection of the ageism this group experiences themselves in the workplace.
On a more positive note, one in ten (10%) members of the public do not think there is an age where people stop being seen as a desirable candidate for employers to hire.
The polling is highlighting the prevalence of ageism in the UK as the Centre for Ageing Better launches the third year of its charity campaign, Age Without Limits.
This year the campaign focusses on the absurdity of everyday ageism, highlighting how the persistent acceptance of negative attitudes towards ageing has the potential to limit all our lives as we get older.
The Age Without Limits campaign is highlighting the harmful nature of ageism across all aspects of society and the need for everyone to question and challenge age-based prejudice wherever they come across it.
Dr Carole Easton OBE, Chief Executive at the Centre for Ageing Better, said: “In the latest phase of our campaign, we are highlighting the absurdity of ageism. It is a prejudice against our future selves, as we all hope to get older one day. It is in no one’s interests to impose limits and barriers on what we can do as we get older. Our survey shows it can also be a prejudice against our current self, with people in their 50s, 60s and beyond assigning themselves age limits to what can and can’t be done in later life – something known as ‘internalised ageism’.
“Our polling shows how all-encompassing ageism can be with societal judgements around what we can wear, our working lives and how people’s capabilities are perceived based purely on age judgements. Ageism limits work, health, relationships, ambition and confidence—and ultimately whose lives are seen as worth investing in. Ridding society of ageism would have such a transformative impact on so many lives.”
Age Without Limits campaign supporter Danielle Barbereau said: “In my early 50s I experienced significant ageism in my career to such an extent that I was completely frozen out and found it impossible to find a new job. I was left feeling obsolete, desperate to keep providing for my family and scared about what the future would have in store.
“I was forced to take my own initiative to start a new career which I am still thriving in now and have no intention to stop doing anytime soon. It is terrible so many people are written off in their 50s but I’m glad I was able to show how absurd it is for some people to think that at my age I had nothing more to offer in the workplace.”
Leave a Comment