As the UK’s workforce grows older and retirement age reaches an all new high, age needs to become a much bigger factor in organisation’s hiring decisions. Studies have found that nearly one in three UK workers are now aged 50 and over, with the average UK employee being aged 40. This is only set to grow over the next decade.

Organisations can benefit greatly from hiring more mature candidates. While younger candidates might possess more technical knowledge, particularly when it comes to technology, the transferable experience and instincts of older professionals, gained from years of working on various transformations and projects, shouldn’t be overlooked because of their age. 

Unfortunately, this is exactly what is happening. Age bias has become a pressing issue and a frustrating barrier that is sidelining experienced, older professionals, despite the market desperately needing their valuable skills and experience.

What is age bias?

Age bias, otherwise known as ageism, is when people are discriminated against due to their age.  In the context of recruitment, age bias can prevent candidates from being considered for roles because of their age. While many believe it only impacts those over 50, it can also impact younger candidates too.

Age bias can take several forms, both unconsciously and consciously, and is often founded on negative, age-based stereotypes. For example, if you’re an older candidate, ageist hiring managers might overlook you because they believe older people aren’t good with newer technologies, aren’t physically or mentally capable of doing the role well or want higher salaries.

Under the Equality Act 2010, it’s actually illegal to discriminate someone on the basis of age in all aspects of employment, from recruitment to promotions to dismissal. Unfortunately, this hasn’t prevented age bias from becoming an increasing problem within the UK.

According to research commissioned by the UK charity, the Centre for Ageing Better, half of adults aged 50 and over in England have experienced age discrimination during the past year. Separate research carried out by the charity also found that as many as one in three people aged 50 and over believe they have been turned down for a job or promotion because of their age.

The Equality and Human Rights Commission’s last national survey of prejudice and discrimination also discovered that a higher proportion (26%) of British adults had reported experiencing prejudice based on their age than any other protected characteristic, including race, disabilities or religion.

The impact of age bias on candidates

Like any other form of discrimination, age bias can have a large and detrimental effect on mature professionals. For instance, you might be interested in taking a less senior position but get overlooked because you’re seen as overqualified or have too much experience. This can reduce opportunities for you to upskill, knowledge share or mentor colleagues, causing feelings of dissatisfaction and failure.

You might not get invited to interviews or get many job offers, despite having the necessary skills and experience the organisation is looking for. This can lead to an extended job search, with mature candidates taking twice as long to find work than younger candidates, according to studies.

Feelings of being excluded can accumulate and begin to have a negative impact on your mental health. Your confidence and self-worth might be knocked, making it increasingly difficult for you to show your best self during the hiring process. There’s also the added stress of potentially losing your income and financial security.

If that wasn’t enough, age bias can also make you self-conscious of your age, putting you off applying for roles altogether, leaving your career stagnant and you feeling deflated.

Overcoming age bias

It’s undoubtedly frustrating to have something you can’t control, hold you back from your career goals and aspirations. But while it might all seem like doom and gloom right now, there is hope for mature candidates in today’s jobs market. As organisations start to recognise the benefits and contributions of older workers and the negative impact of age bias, change is slowly but surely, starting to happen.

Many organisations are gradually taking a stand against age bias through means such as inclusivity training and rethinking their hiring practises. Mature candidates are also finding their own effective tactics to help combat and overcome the biases that are often against them when finding a new role.

One tactic to mitigate age bias early on is to omit your age, date of birth and graduation dates from your CV or application form, as this can prevent organisations from estimating how old you are. Make sure your CV doesn’t include any mentions of technologies that may now be obsolete, as well as outdated terminology.

You should also look out for job ads that use more inclusive language, such as “experienced”, “flexible working opportunities” or “all may apply”. This language should give you confidence that you’re less likely to experience age discrimination at this particular organisation. Also keep your eye out for ads with a particular focus on experience rather than skills and competencies.

Leveraging your existing network, whether by word of mouth or via social media, for referrals is another popular option as people are more likely to hire candidates who are recommended to them by someone they know.

Before reaching out to everyone you know, make sure your LinkedIn profile is up to date with your most recent work experiences, qualifications and contact information. You can also enable the “Open to work” feature which will signal to your network and potential recruiters and hiring managers that you’re in search of a new role.

But you also don’t have to wait for opportunities to come to you. Start looking for industry events and conferences to start meeting new people working within your industry who might know of potential opportunities. This is also the perfect outlet for you to update your knowledge of current trends, challenges and technologies within your industry.

Mentorship can be another invaluable tactic for you to utilise. A mentor of a similar age may have experienced age bias within their own job search and can impart valuable insights and tips to help you navigate it successfully.

Conclusion

It can be easy for mature candidates to feel like throwing in the towel and admitting defeat. But there is still very much a place for them in the modern workplace. After all age is just a number and the skills, experience and intuition they bring to the table should be considered a benefit and an asset, not a hindrance.

With the introduction of age bias training and education and the insights of mature professional, organisations are slowly realising their own bias and addressing them by changing mindsets and rethinking their hiring processes. As the reality of the ageing workforce becomes more real for many, there will soon be no option but for progress to be made. So rather than seeing no hope, we’d encourage older candidates to continue pursuing their career ambitions. no matter what age they are.

If you need additional support, feel free to contact our team—or stay tuned for our upcoming guides tailored to older candidates.