I seem to constantly hear that once you turn 40, employers don’t want to hire you.
I’ve gotten advice that you should start your own business, or enter your own profession (accounting, etc), so that you don’t have to get ‘hired’ again, if you lose your job later in life.
Today in the NY Times, a 50 year old former executive is waiting tables:
“agencies are “not hiring middle-aged people, especially with his qualifications, when they’re not sure what’s going to happen next.””
So my question is WHY is there such a negative response from employers for those applying over 40?
I would have thought that:
–The average manager is middle aged himself and would respect other people who are near his age.
–Older people have more experience
–Because of the baby boom, there may be more people in their 40’s than their 20’s (at least who are educated) ??
–Most jobs are ‘at-will’ in the United States, so employers can easily hire a 40 year old and fire them if they want in 15 years
–Most jobs have 401k’s and not pensions
–While older employees may use more health insurance benefits and sick days, it’s really a minor thing to consider when hiring, and the hiring manager probably wouldn’t care
So while I understand that a high ranking person who is 50 or more would have a hard time getting a similar job in a bad economy, as evidenced in the article above, it seems that the ‘discrimination’ against the over 40 types is more than should be logical.
???