What is Ageism? What are the steps to combat it?

There is a deeply associated stereotype with technology: that it is a young man’s game. Ageism has always been present in all fields, including technology. There is a thought process that old people are slow to adapt and master technology. This has also been seen in the hiring industry.

With the world witnessing a plethora of jobs in the IT field (along with the recent rise of Artificial Intelligence), Ageism is one of the significant forms of discrimination in the hiring industry. While Ageism can also be directed towards any person irrespective of age, it is older people who are the most affected by it. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Ageism ‘refers to the stereotypes (how we think), prejudice (how we feel) and discrimination (how we act) towards others or oneself based on age.’

While the hiring industry has focused on eliminating other types of biases, such as gender bias and racial bias, Ageism is an area that seldom generates any concentrated effort from organizations.

In the hiring industry, Ageism is so rampant that three of five elderly employees experienced it in the workplace, according to a survey in 2018.

Causes of Ageism 

Lack of established process 

While organizations have now adopted the DEI hiring practices, the guidelines provide little instruction on combating Ageism. In fact, the DEI always focuses on issues such as gender, race, or even socioeconomic status. So, there is a major barrier at the starting point that does not even recognize ageism bias, which makes it very hard to combat.

Stereotypes 

As mentioned earlier, Ageism can affect people of any age. In the hiring industry, there are several stereotypes that people of a specific age are bound to have some homogeneous characteristics irrespective of their age or sex. For example, an elderly person may not be able to upskill themselves as they become stubborn or sicker than their young peers.

However, Ageism can also be discriminatory towards younger people as well. For example, a young employee could be denied an experienced role in the company based on the stereotypical assumptions that young people may not fit for such a job at an early age.

How to prevent Ageism in hiring 

Blind resume 

Blind resumes will always remain one of the most effective ways to combat bias. A blind resume hides all a candidate’s physical features, allowing hirers to assess a CV only based on his skills. Using Blind resumes has been shown to massively improve the quality of candidates who eventually get hired.

Standardized interviews 

Another way to eliminate Ageism is to use pre-decided interview questions. Standardized interviews ensures a level playing field for all candidates. Asking the same questions of every candidate helps the hirers establish a set of parameters to better judge who might be suited for the role.

Use of AI 

The rise of ChatGPT was a giant leap in artificial intelligence. Since then, AI has become a force to reckon with. And it is here that BarRaiser comes to your rescue. With BarRaiser, organizations get an Interview Intelligence Platform that allows for smarter hiring. BarRaiser uses standardized interviews and AI interview Copilot. It also offers Interviewer Training. It ensures our clients experience quick and quality hiring to eliminate hiring bias.

Including age in DEI 

As mentioned earlier, companies use DEI hiring practices to ensure diversity in the workplace. However, age is one factor that is often overlooked. One reason for this is the lack of acceptance that an issue like Ageism even exists in the first place. This can only be tackled if DEI goals include age as a form of discrimination.

Conduct a workshop on Ageism 

What are the benefits of having age diversity in an organization? Well, there are plenty.

Increased productivity 

Several researchers have pointed out that age diversity in an organization leads to increased productivity in the workplace. The major reason for this is that people of different age groups bring varied skills, which will foster a more healthy work environment.

Mentor-mentee relationship

One of the advantages of age diversity is that it helps the young and old form a mentor-mentee relationship. Old employees have a lot of experience, which can be very helpful for the young employees who are starting their careers. Since the experience they learn is invaluable, it also ensures that the retention rate is high.

Diversification of organizations

Any organization aims to expand and diversify into new products to increase profitability. Thus, having people from diverse backgrounds helps the company if it delves into new businesses in the future. Having employees from various age groups also allows the company to gain experience regarding various products.

Reverse Ageism 

While the elderly are usually the victims of Ageism, there are also cases where young employees are affected. This phenomenon is called reverse Ageism. Research points out that younger employees are mainly the victims of a stereotypical thought process that is deemed to be not having enough experience for a particular role in the company.

One of the examples of reverse Ageism is when a job posting requires a candidate to have a number of years of experience. This does not take into account that a candidate could be adept for the role even without the required numbers of experience required for the job.

Moreover, in the workplace young employees find their opinions, feedback not being taken seriously. This is because older employees in the organizations might not value their viewpoints because of their young age. 

Furthermore, this means that young employees could find themselves being excluded from important projects based on their age. 

Ageism, like any other discrimination, can only be countered by a multi-frontal strategy. Only then can we embark on a path toward a diverse and toxic-free work environment.

BarRaiser is the best AI interview platform that features structured interviews, AI-generated interview notes , interviewer training, and tools to ensure quality hiring while eliminating biases from the recruitment process. With BarRaiser’s support, you’ll be well-equipped to build a strong team of sales associates who will drive sales and deliver exceptional customer service.