Your career shouldn’t be stalled by your age
Young people are missing out on opportunities to progress at work simply because some employers assume they are too young to cope with more responsibility. In fact, you may have discounted the idea of a promotion because you don’t match the age of other managers in your workplace.
A quarter of Brits have heard of a younger person in their workplace being overlooked for promotion in favour of an older person, regardless of their experience, and just 3 percent think the ideal age for a Chief Executive is under 30 years old. Times are changing though. New anti-age discrimination laws introduced in October 2006 means that treating people differently at work or in training because of their age is now unlawful. It pays to know your rights to make sure you’re being treated fairly at work and can follow the career path you’re aiming for.
Tom Ball, a 30 year old area manager for a leading hospitality company is fortunate because his employers value his skills rather then making assumptions about his age. He says, “I’ve been really lucky, my employers have helped me progress in my career at the fast pace I want to. I didn’t have such a good experience with a former employer several years ago though. They weren’t interested in my development at all: when I asked how I could progress to senior management, their response was to ask again in five years time!”
If you feel you’ve been treated differently from colleagues because of your age, you’re not alone. As many as 58 percent of 16-24 year olds believe they have been treated unfairly because of their age and lack of experience.
The new laws should help to challenge workplace and industry stereotypes and make ageism at work as unacceptable as racism or sexism. Your boss can no longer deny you the opportunity of a promotion or training because he thinks you’re too young. You’re also protected against bullying and harassment relating to your age. It might seem like a bit of harmless fun, but if your life is made a misery by constant torments, you now have the right to address this.
You may also have noticed when job hunting that job adverts no longer ask for a certain number of years’ experience. This is to protect you from age discrimination and to encourage recruiters to look at the skills you have no matter how old you are.
So, if you’re thinking about going for a promotion at work, don’t be put off if your colleagues are older than you. Have confidence in your abilities and don’t let age affect the career path you chose to follow. If you think you have been treated unfairly because of your age, talk to your boss and explain why you’re unhappy - they should be willing to try and put things right. If all else fails though, you may need to take legal action.
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