Age Discrimination in the Economy

Ageism means stereotyping, prejudice or discrimination based on age. The World Health Organization’s 2021 Global Report on Ageism found that around one in two people worldwide held ageist attitudes. Ageism affects older people’s economic lives in many ways.

In hiring

Studies using correspondence experiments, where researchers send fictional job applications that differ only in the applicant’s age, have found clear evidence of age discrimination. A large U.S. study by David Neumark, Ian Burn and Patrick Button found that older applicants, especially older women, received fewer callbacks than younger applicants with similar qualifications.

Common stereotypes

Employers may assume older workers are:

• Less adaptable or slower to learn new technology.
• More expensive.
• Less productive or more often ill.
• Close to retirement, so not worth training.

Research generally finds these stereotypes are often exaggerated. Older workers tend to have lower turnover, strong experience and similar or better reliability, though some physical abilities do decline with age.

Beyond jobs

Ageism can also appear in:

• Lending: some banks restrict loans based on age.
• Insurance: age limits and higher premiums, some reflecting real risk, others not.
• Health care: assumptions that certain treatments are not worth providing to older patients.
• Marketing and media: older people ignored or portrayed negatively.

Laws

Many countries prohibit age discrimination in employment. The U.S. Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 protects workers aged 40 and over. The European Union prohibits age discrimination in employment. Enforcement is often difficult, since discrimination can be hard to prove.

Economic cost

Ageism wastes skills and experience, pushes people out of work earlier than they would choose and can harm health and wellbeing. As populations age, making full use of older workers becomes increasingly important.