The stereotype of being inflexible, assertive and resistant to change exposes matured workers to prejudices and prevents organizations from benefiting from their knowledge and experience.
Corporate organizations subscribe to practices that promote equal employment opportunity for all irrespective of age, gender, religion, etc. They also affirm their willingness to engage in hiring practices that eliminate all forms of workplace prejudices. Despite this claim, matured job seekers still suffer from systematic prejudices resulting from myths.
The bias against hiring matured job seekers – workers above the age of 40 years – is pervading. The belief among some HR professionals that matured workers are too assertive, inflexible and resistant to change prevents them from hiring such workers. This practice also prevents corporate organizations from benefiting from the knowledge and experience of matured workers. This blog post repudiates some of the myths that inhibit the hiring of matured job seekers.
Myth #1: It costs more to pay and retain matured workers
This argument holds that matured workers demand more in terms of salary and other benefits. Proponents of this argument believe that the organization can hire younger and less experienced workers and train them on the job to achieve the same result as hiring matured, experienced but more expensive workers.
The above arguments are not entirely correct. Matured workers usually come to the workplace with years of experience. So they require little or no training to hit the ground running. Matured workers are usually in the middle stages of their careers and looking to consolidate or reinvent their careers. Accordingly, they show a more responsible attitude to work. In addition, mid-career employees are considered most likely to be productive, to take initiative, to be creative, and to want to lead and supervisor others. This is according to a survey by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work.
Matured workers may provide skills, mentorship and training for younger employees. This, no doubt, helps the organization to recoup the cost of hiring them. Organizations may save more money by hiring younger workers. However, in the long run, hiring matured workers would lead to savings in trainings, mistakes and reworks common with using younger and inexperience workers.
Younger workers are usually on a voyage of discovery. Many young employees will leave in search of new opportunities and higher remunerations long before the organization recoups the cost of training them. Older workers are usually happy to get a second chance. They are, therefore, more likely to stay long after younger workers have left. Matured workers are keen to stabilize their careers, make a living and work out an exit strategy. In the long run, matured workers save the organization more money than their younger counterparts.
Myth #2: Matured workers are usually very dogmatic, assertive and sometimes inflexible
This myth suggests that matured workers are usually very assertive, rule-based, inflexible but often narrow-minded. According to some HR professionals, matured workers behave in ways that suggests that they have seen it all. Proponents of these views argue that the possession of several years of experience exacerbates this behaviour.
The existence of certain corporate culture and traditions seriously undermines the above argument. Many corporate workplaces are policy-driven. In policy-driven organizations, working practices and relationship order are built around the consistency of policy and delivery. Such organizations allow little or no room for experimentation, exposition of new ideas and radical change in existing policies. Most times, failure to act in line with the established corporate rules and regulations attracts stiff punishment. Matured workers understand the implication of disregarding established corporate policies. Thus, they normally will act in ways that reflect this understanding.
Based on their previous work experiences, matured workers are more likely to examine work-related issues critically. They also have a higher tendency to weigh options and evaluate circumstances before making decisions. This may explain why they appear more assertive in handling work-related issues. Ordinarily, this should help to improve the quality of decision making; however, it is often misconstrued as being dogmatic or inflexible.
Myth #3: Matured workers are usually unwilling to learn; they are resistant to change
According to this myth, matured workers show less willingness to learn and to acquire new skills. They hold on to what they know, are resistant to change, and uncomfortable with adapting to modern technology.
Contrary to these commonly held stereotypes, research has shown that “employee age is negatively related to resistance to change”. In another research, Tracey E. Rizzuto, assistant professor of psychology at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, found that older workers are more open to change. According to Rizzuto, there is no material difference between the way old and younger people approach the use of technology. Although there may be isolated cases of older workers being resistant to change, Professor Rizzuto’s research suggests that this trait is not typical of older workers.
Older workers may not be as fast as younger workers in learning, but older workers show more enthusiasm, stronger commitment and willingness to learn than their younger counterparts, according to Dr. Rizzuto. As older workers usually exhibit more maturity, they normally will appreciate the value of the change and feel obliged to cooperate with their co-workers to learn and implement the new technology.
Stereotypes deprive organizations the benefit of older workers’ experience.
The practice of using age to judge whether a prospective job seeker is qualified for a job opening prevents companies from benefiting from the knowledge, experience and skill of older workers. Rather than rejecting older workers based on these myths, companies should instead harness the experience, skill and commitment of older workers to their advantage.
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