Press Archive
Towards a balanced workforce
29 June 1998

Towards a balanced workforce

A nationwide investigation into the issue of Ageism in the workplace

BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY

The dramatic shift in the age profile of the population of the United Kingdom, and indeed throughout the developed world, combined with improvements in health and diet have resulted in an ageing population.

This situation, coupled with the pressures on employment caused by the recent recession and the effects of increasingly sophisticated technology, has led to an apparent increase in the incidence of allegations of age discrimination - so called 'Ageism'.

Much progress has been made in combating discrimination on grounds of race, sex and disability but, so far, little has been done about age discrimination.

Research published by Austin Knight earlier this year into the broader subject of equality of opportunity in the workplace revealed a worrying trend in respect of age discrimination. Asked if they had been the subject of discrimination during their career, the single most frequently mentioned area amongst our sample was age. Over a third of those answering from amongst a sample of over 1,000 workers said that they had been subjected to age discrimination at some time.

Just how important an issue is age in the workplace? Does 'Ageism' exist, and if it does, how widespread is it? Is it just an issue for the older worker, or are younger workers - possibly on the way to becoming a new minority - just as likely to become affected?

We think it is high time we delved deeper into the issues, to get the facts straight from the those most directly affected - the employees. Accordingly, this summer we teamed up with The Employers Forum on Age, to carry out a major survey amongst staff at all levels and of all ages - right across the country.

Over two thousand people took part in what is probably the largest survey of its kind carried out in this country. Their views - some predictable, some surprising - throw new light on the whole issue of 'Ageism' and workforce balance from the worker's point of view. We believe the results could have significant impact on the future shape and content of Human Resourcing and Career Development strategies.

SUMMARY OF MAIN FINDINGS
  • Just over half work in an ageism-free environment - a fifth definitely don't - but senior managers and men least likely to see workplace as ageism-free
  • Well over half don't know if their employer has a formal anti-age discrimination policy - nearly two thirds say that they should
  • Overwhelming majority agree that it's ability, not age, that counts
  • You can teach an old dog new tricks - but the under 30's are twice as likely to see older staff as unable to acquire new skills
  • New technology seen as a problem by 1 in 5 older workers
  • No major difficulties working as part of a mixed-age workforce - but older people more comfortable with it
  • Managing older staff is more of a problem for the young - but older workers have no problem with younger bosses
  • Older staff are not as seen to take more time off - but younger employees are more than twice as likely to think that they do
  • Majority view older workers as more stable and loyal - the young and women are less convinced
  • Two-thirds of senior managers say their organisation would suffer s knowledge gap if people retired early
  • Close to half of the over 40's, and over a third of senior managers, see early retirement as a cheap alternative to making staff redundant
  • 8 in 10 employees are in favour of legislation on ageism; only a quarter think an anti-ageism law wouldn't work
  • Over three-quarters think that age limits should be banned from job advertisements
  • A quarter of all respondents have experienced ageism in their career - over half of them because they were too young - only a few complained but one in six changed jobs
  • Amongst older employees 40 year old women and 50 year old men are the most likely to encounter age discrimination
© AUSTIN KNIGHT UK LIMITED 1996

This project was conceived by Austin Knight in collaboration with The Employers Forum on Age

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