Dealing with the Universal Job Discriminant: Age
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We all have, at one point or another in our lives, faced this type of discrimination. Age is one that is almost never talked about but is factored in more universally than race or gender. Some people don't weigh it very heavily when making a decision, others weigh it very heavily. If you want to read more, go here: http://www.thanksaj.com/2014/09/overcoming-the-universal-discriminant-age/
Enjoy! I appreciate all feedback!
Thanks,
A.J. -
On average, the older you are, the more experienced you are, and the more valuable you are. You can't deny that simple logic.
My fear now is age discrimination the other way: being considered too old for jobs. IT is generally seen as a young man's game.
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The other factor is with the economy crashing, lots of older people aren't retiring on schedule, which slows the pipeline for newbies to join.
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@Carnival-Boy said:
On average, the older you are, the more experienced you are, and the more valuable you are. You can't deny that simple logic.
My fear now is age discrimination the other way: being considered too old for jobs. IT is generally seen as a young man's game.
I won't deny that, as a rule, age = experience. However, there are plenty of cases where the degree to which that can be true (if you're 40, you automatically have more experience than someone who's 25, technically-speaking) varies. Someone may be older, but that doesn't make them more qualified. That's what I'm getting at.
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@Nic said:
The other factor is with the economy crashing, lots of older people aren't retiring on schedule, which slows the pipeline for newbies to join.
This is true. Lots of people in IT are getting close to retirement age but aren't retiring. GRR!
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@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
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@IRJ said:
@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
In what context?
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@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
In what context?
You know how to do XYZ at work but are never given the chance so you can’t list skills you have as something you’ve utilized in a business environment.You don't really know how to do anything until you do it on a live environment with many variables. You may know concepts, but you things never go as planned in home lab scenarios.
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@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
In what context?
You know how to do XYZ at work but are never given the chance so you can’t list skills you have as something you’ve utilized in a business environment.You don't really know how to do anything until you do it on a live environment with many variables. You may know concepts, but you things never go as planned in home lab scenarios.
I'm aware of that. Experience in terms of troubleshooting exact/weird scenarios comes with age and time, but still, there are plenty of people who are way more qualified, even say without as much of that, than someone 20 years their senior.
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@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
In what context?
You know how to do XYZ at work but are never given the chance so you can’t list skills you have as something you’ve utilized in a business environment.You don't really know how to do anything until you do it on a live environment with many variables. You may know concepts, but you things never go as planned in home lab scenarios.
I'm aware of that. Experience in terms of troubleshooting exact/weird scenarios comes with age and time, but still, there are plenty of people who are way more qualified, even say without as much of that, than someone 20 years their senior.
GIven the choice, I would rather hire someone that has seen the weird scenarios that come up. Otherwise anyone else can use google.
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@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
In what context?
You know how to do XYZ at work but are never given the chance so you can’t list skills you have as something you’ve utilized in a business environment.You don't really know how to do anything until you do it on a live environment with many variables. You may know concepts, but you things never go as planned in home lab scenarios.
I'm aware of that. Experience in terms of troubleshooting exact/weird scenarios comes with age and time, but still, there are plenty of people who are way more qualified, even say without as much of that, than someone 20 years their senior.
GIven the choice, I would rather hire someone that has seen the weird scenarios that come up. Otherwise anyone else can use google.
Still, some people are more technical qualified, and have greater aptitude. That's what I'm getting at.
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@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
In what context?
You know how to do XYZ at work but are never given the chance so you can’t list skills you have as something you’ve utilized in a business environment.You don't really know how to do anything until you do it on a live environment with many variables. You may know concepts, but you things never go as planned in home lab scenarios.
I'm aware of that. Experience in terms of troubleshooting exact/weird scenarios comes with age and time, but still, there are plenty of people who are way more qualified, even say without as much of that, than someone 20 years their senior.
GIven the choice, I would rather hire someone that has seen the weird scenarios that come up. Otherwise anyone else can use google.
Still, some people are more technical qualified, and have greater aptitude. That's what I'm getting at.
Which is why they will pay their dues and gain experience before expecting a Lv2 or 3 position. They will get more pay and be more valued with experience
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I've seen extremely little age discrimination, especially in IT.
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@Reid-Cooper said:
I've seen extremely little age discrimination, especially in IT.
It's definitely better than some fields, that is true.
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@Reid-Cooper Same here. I haven't seen any.
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@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham said:
@IRJ said:
@ajstringham You'll view things a little differently when you get older and more experienced
In what context?
You know how to do XYZ at work but are never given the chance so you can’t list skills you have as something you’ve utilized in a business environment.You don't really know how to do anything until you do it on a live environment with many variables. You may know concepts, but you things never go as planned in home lab scenarios.
I'm aware of that. Experience in terms of troubleshooting exact/weird scenarios comes with age and time, but still, there are plenty of people who are way more qualified, even say without as much of that, than someone 20 years their senior.
GIven the choice, I would rather hire someone that has seen the weird scenarios that come up. Otherwise anyone else can use google.
Still, some people are more technical qualified, and have greater aptitude. That's what I'm getting at.
Which is why they will pay their dues and gain experience before expecting a Lv2 or 3 position. They will get more pay and be more valued with experience
The argument of what "paying your dues" means varies. Some seem to think it means a decade, others think a year or two. I still don't have a definitive decision on it, only that when the person is qualified, age shouldn't be a factor.
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If anything in IT young might be favored.
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As a Manager something I hear a lot in business training classes is avoid hiring anyone under the age of 25. You will deal with entitlement issues and lack of maturity.
As a manager I have seen the young one who is awesome and is mature and settled but far more of the unable to handle the day to day structure of working in a real job.
So I do understand the paying your dues bit. You have to prove your reliability more than your abilities to do a job these days.
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@Minion-Queen said:
As a Manager something I hear a lot in business training classes is avoid hiring anyone under the age of 25. You will deal with entitlement issues and lack of maturity.
As a manager I have seen the young one who is awesome and is mature and settled but far more of the unable to handle the day to day structure of working in a real job.
So I do understand the paying your dues bit. You have to prove your reliability more than your abilities to do a job these days.
That I will agree with. Very well said.
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