OLDER people in the workplace are often respected for their years of service, in-depth knowledge of the job, and their competency and reliability in carrying out their duties. On the other hand, the experience is not so pleasant for many older people who, because of their age, are treated unfavourably.

Ageism is a global phenomenon that entails discriminating against and or stereotyping older persons in the workplace.

In 2016 the American Assocciatino for Retired Persons (AARP), a US-based organisation targeting the interest of people 50 years or older, released the results of a survey that revealed that “nearly two out of three workers age 45 or older have seen or experienced age discrimination on the job” in the US.

Studies show that this kind of discrimination is often manifested in organisations in the form of sidelining older persons for promotion by management, and excluding them from planning committees, projects and social events in favour of younger and sometimes less-qualified persons. Sometimes there are no clear reasons for such treatment, or the reason may be due to giving younger employees “a chance”, or because the older person is near to retirement.

Furthermore, studies also indicate that older persons, such as those who may be in their 50s, may have difficulty finding employment because of the prevailing biases and stereotypes that may cause them to be perceived as not being technologically savvy and being resistant to adaptation and change.

Fifty-four-year-old Brian related that he has been employed in a clerical position with the same organisation for more than two decades. He explained that his redundancy will take effect on December 31, following a restructuring at his workplace recently. He is concerned that finding employment in the newyYear may be a challenge because of his age.

“It’s not very likely, but it’s not impossible. I’m a very optimistic person but at the same time I am concerned because, even though I’m experienced, I don’t think experience alone, especially at my age, will enable me to get employment,” he said.

He pointed out that despite the potential challenge ahead of him, he is trying to maintain calm.

“I try not to think about it because if I do it will make me stressed, and being stressed at my age is not good,” he said, adding that he is prepared to accept any job that becomes available.

The impact of ageism is far-reaching. The World Health Organization, in a post on Twitter, declared that “an estimated 6.3 million cases of depression globally are estimated to be attributable to ageism. It intersects and exacerbates other forms of bias and disadvantage — including those related to sex, race and disability — leading to a negative impact on people’s health and well-being.”

Diana Henry, a psychologist in training, emphasised that the effects of ageism can be looked at in two ways.

“Some employers will tell you that they have taken into consideration the mental health, physical and psychological impact of their employees who are more aged, while on the other hand research has shown that ageism transcends their personal lives and in the workplace, where discrimination, victimisation and stereotyping do occur.”

“The psychological impact of ageism is that the worker becomes more stressed.

“It can cause social isolation and loneliness; affects their self-worth, work performance and their social well-being negatively,” Henry said.

G Andre Latty, executive, people and culture at the Jamaica National Group, pointed out that contrary to how some persons perceive older persons, they provide significant value to an organisation.

“Older adults have years of experience in performing particular roles and thus would have developed expertise in that area and become resource persons who are able to impart knowledge to other workers. In such a case, they contribute to the productivity of the workplace. Also, because of their maturity, older persons often have good work ethics, which helps to maintain workplace harmony,” the human resource expert explained.

“Furthermore, older persons are more likely to stay in a job longer than a younger person, and this brings stability and reduces the high incidence of staff turnover, resulting in significant savings by the organisation,” he added.