When posting job ads and hiring workers, companies are not allowed to let age factor into the equation, as it’s a type of discrimination—commonly known as ageism. Older workers are to be considered based on their qualifications, along with younger workers.
However, some warn that ads placed in the tech industry could be in violation of these laws. Some of the ads ask for “recent graduates” and may even specify how recently someone needs to have graduated from college.
The problem, then, is that some experts say that older workers, though they may be qualified for the jobs, will not apply based on that stipulation. When tech companies want people who have graduated in the last five years, even workers who are just 27 or 28 could already be “too old” to apply.
The conundrum is that some tech companies do prefer younger workers, as the space changes quickly. Recent graduates tend to be more up on recent technology and devices. As technology marches on, tech companies don’t want to train older workers on how to use these things.
This type of ageism can be seen even with the largest companies. For example, in 2007, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said at a conference that “Young people are just smarter.” Though he’s over 30 now, he was just 22 years old at the time. It is this attitude that gets into the ads and can lead to discrimination.
Have you been discriminated against based on age in New Jersey? Whether in the tech industry or any other line of work, you must know what legal options you have.
Source: Fortune, “Tech industry job ads: Older workers need not apply,” Verne Kopytoff, accessed Jan. 14, 2016
