A high proportion of people – especially men – think ageist myths around older workers’ competency and value in the workplace, a new survey has revealed.  

A study by campaign group Age Without Limits has suggested that ageist assumptions persist about older workers’ ability to work quickly, to be adaptable, to cope with technology and to be a long-term asset for an employer persist.

The Age Without Limits survey reveals that one in four people (24%) think it does not make business sense to employ someone over 50 because they will be a slow worker who will not be able to adapt.

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More than one in five people (22%) also thought it was a waste of resources to give in-job training to someone over 50 because they did not think older workers were likely to stay in their role for long, according to the survey commissioned by charity the Centre for Ageing Better, which is behind the campaign.

The survey also reveals that around one in three members of the public (32%) think that people become less competent using technology as they get older.

Dr Carole Easton, chief executive at the Centre for Ageing Better, said that it was troubling that, as the study revealed, there was a particularly high proportion of ageist attitudes among people with the highest educational qualifications. These were the people most likely to make decisions around hiring, promoting and developing workers who were in their 50s and 60s.

She said: “It is so dispiriting that these attitudes persist when older workers have such potential to tackle skills shortages, help businesses to thrive and grow our national economy.”

It was little wonder that older workers were less likely to receive in-work training, and were more likely to be made redundant and experience greater difficulties finding work, Easton added.

The new research reveals pronounced differences in the views of men and women including:

• More than one in four men (27%) think it does not make business sense to employ someone over 50 compared to one in five women (21%).
• Men (26%) are also more likely to agree it is a waste of resources to provide training for staff over 50 than women (18%).
• More than one in three men (37%) believe that people become less competent with technology as they get older, compared with one in four women (27%).
• One in three (31%) people with a Level 4 qualification or above thinks it does not make business sense to employ someone over 50 – almost twice the proportion of people with a Level 3 qualification (17%).
• More than one in four (29%) people with a Level 4 qualification or above thinks it is a waste of resources to give in-job training to a staff member over 50 – more than twice the proportion of people with a Level 3 qualification (13%).

Katherine Crawshaw, co-head of Age Without Limits campaign at the Centre for Ageing Better, said: “We all have a role to play in noticing ageism in our own attitudes to ageing, and we all have a role to play in helping to challenge ageism we might see or hear in the workplace, in the cafe, in the pub, on social media or among our friends and family.”

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