Beat Age Bias: Top Tips for Older Job Seekers

[@socjhz1]

Thank you, very thought provoking, I will be 60 next year and I am now in the process of looking for a new role.....and wonder, how much my age MIGHT go against me....food for thought

[@jonspell88]

Many years ago, I had an interviewer ask me what year I graduated high school. I called him on it in a mock-serious manner - Oh, that's how you get around asking me how old I am! I did end up getting the job, but I heard through the grapevine that my response was a red flag, that I might be the type of person to essentially be a whistleblower. I did not do that, but they were definitely doing some creative licensing of their products.

[@LifeWorkBalance]

GREAT example of a "creative way" to try to figure out how old you were....people can be sneaky, even if they aren't trying to be!

[@abrahamcastellanos3281]

Great advices you shre with us.

[@hamiltonas1]

I experienced age discrimination during an interview 2 weeks ago and I'm in my early 30s... I had great interviews with the female talent acquisition manager and the female Director... but not with the male VP. I was excited about the opportunity but he showed up to our Zoom interview with a baseball cap and seemed like he didn't want to be bothered with me. He then went on to say that "the X office is very young", he's the boss of the female Director and he's a "VP at only 32". I was polite through the interview but it was uncomfortable. I was notified a few days later that they moved forward with a different candidate. So many red flags.

[@RestorationRanchHealing]

I had a workforce development manager work with me on my resumes. She told me point blank I was being age discriminated as well as experience discriminated. The manager pulled all of my employment dates as well as paired down the skill sets and job titles at the companies I worked at. By the time she finished with my resume I felt I had no experience or work skills.

[@LifeWorkBalance]

Oh gosh 😖 that sounds terrible and really discounts all of the valuable experience you bring with you. Have you ever considered or used ChatGPT to help give you some ideas on how you can tailor your resume for jobs to keep your relevant experience while emphasizing your accomplishments? AND minimizing the focus on your age? This might be something to explore.

[@mohibquadri4053]

Abby how to deal with difficult and annoying people at workplace also which people skills books and tips would be helpful here..

[@LifeWorkBalance]

LOL no shortage of people who can push our buttons! I'd recommend looking into 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - this book has life skills that are applicable to any relationship. One of the first big takeaways is the "circle of influence" which relates to how we respond to others.

[@mnob1122]

Illegal?! So what, these companies know how to get around the system. I couldn’t afford to retire and was “pushed out”. I sued a well known company for age discrimination. My lawyer said this type of discrimination is in epidemic proportion in the USA. Other friends in my age group have suffered the same fate. Now trying to find work where age is not as much of a factor. Land of opportunity my ass. What a sick joke.

[@DD-vn2ev]

No sh!t, no sh!t, no sh!t.. 58 unemployed for 9 months, 2 interviews. Willing to work for far less than I made.. no good. Looks like I retired early, like it or not.

[@LifeWorkBalance]

Gosh, I am sorry this has been such an awful process for you. I would agree with your lawyer - this is a HUGE problem, and it will end up being a huge problem for employers who miss out on great, top talent because they are consciously or unconsciously excluding people from diverse age groups. Each person has the potential to provide exceptional value to an organization, regardless of age.

[@LifeWorkBalance]

You may want to get your resume reviewed - if you have been applying to jobs for 9 months and have only recieved 2 interviews, it sounds like your resume isn't doing it's job of getting you in front of decision makers. You can choose to work with someone like me to review your resume or you can check out free resources through your local workforce center (if you are in the USA). Workforce centers are fantastic FREE resources and they have experts onboard to help you with your resume, job applications, and interviewing techniques. If you don't want to work with a private career coach, I highly, HIGHLY recommend looking into your local workforce center.

[@DD-vn2ev]

​@LifeWorkBalance tried a private career coach, 1 month later, I was 600.00 poorer and still no job. Gave up on private sector jobs. Avg age is 42, government is 47. Bought a resume template for government sector jobs and followed that format. Resumes pass initial reviews and are sent to hiring managers. Nothing after that.

[@LifeWorkBalance]

​@@DD-vn2ev Gosh, that is so disheartening. I'm sorry to hear this has been your experience!! If you are still searching, consider using my resume template. You can download it for free here: lwbalance.com/2020/05/09/free-master-resume-template/ You may also want to consider using a program like ChatGPT to review your resume in relation to a job posting to identify potential gaps and strengths. Here's a video on that topic: kzbin.info/www/bejne/forQZKSPrrqLn6c Let me know if you are looking for any other resources. This can be a grueling process, and I hope you find something that is a good fit for you soon.