What you lose if you fall back on age stereotypes

Whether it’s older workers being made redundant to make room for “fresh” talent or younger workers having their knowledge and abilities questioned, age prejudice will be relevant to everyone at some time in their life. “Some people say it’s the last bastion of the acceptable prejudice or discrimination,” says talent and careers specialist Laura Walker, who took part in CMI’s latest Workplace in Review documentary. “It affects everyone – you can be ageist against young people or old people, it works both ways.”

While the consequential effects on an individual’s self-confidence are obvious, what may be less obvious to employers and managers is the broader effect on their organisation’s talent pool: by letting older workers go, organisations also lose their skills, knowledge and institutional memory, as well as potential mentors to support newer, younger employees. This will only become more relevant as people continue to work longer.