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Ageism in america
Literature review on age discrimination
Literature review on age discrimination
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Age discrimination has long been present in society due to the rapid development happening around us. According to Farney, Aday & Breault (2006), this era of ageism is defined as "discrimination against any age group", but it often is pointed to age discrimination among adults which is slowly causing a negative effect for them in the workplace. In the workplace, adults with more experience and longer history behind them are targets of this ageism belief that companies and employers tend to have (Farney, Aday, & Breault, 2006). They are shunned and even fired in favor of accepting new and fresh faces for the company they have worked for. Unknown to most companies and employers, this notion of favoring the young and banishing the old can cause them a lot of losses in terms of business, economy and individually if this continues on. For this paper, it is my fervent belief that this concept of age discrimination in the workplace can be stopped if there is a proper decorum on addressing the importance of older employees in the workforce and the discussion of the possible consequences of continuing this age discrimination practice and how revise the current recruitment system so that employees are given equal opportunities and not fire them just because of their ages.
The problem of age discrimination especially in the older generation is not a new issue as it has been around for quite a long time. Segrave (2001) noted that most workers are deemed old if they reach their forties in the early nineteenth century. Employers and companies would already start firing people just because of this particular notion on age. Employees find this idea ludicrous and insulting as they are judged just because of their age and some would file charges ...
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...younger generation would also feel this stereotyping, discrimination and prejudice once they step in the age where they can be classified as part of the older generation.
The problem of age discrimination is a long cycle of problems that all members of society would face in some point of their lives. Now that everyone is taking good interest of worker rights, they would realize that this old notion of age discrimination is still happening and they would stop at nothing to get rid of the problem before they experience it themselves. Once this problem is resolved and eliminated, not only would the older generation benefit from it but also the society in general. Everyone must be given a chance to work on their professions even in their golden years, as long as they are happy and stress free because of the lack of discrimination on their age, we should let them be.
A new criterion for the ideal person must be made to not include things such as sex, but to judge a person based on his or her capabilities in doing what he or she does. The question remains on the support for equal treatment based on age, which is a very controversial debate, as factors such as higher wage from experience, or even having the contemporary knowledge for a certain job. One thing is for sure though, on a common view that as people reach old age, they become physically weaker, which may cause employers to not want to hire seniors that needs money to get by, which goes to show how there are many seniors out on the streets searching through public garbage cans for recycles in exchange for a meager income - with an out of portion amount of seniors of colour in such a circumstances goes to show an obvious language barrier still prominent throughout society. What amounts to a “fair” and “equal” treatment of the
world tends to let the decrepit fade out of existence. It is also about the stereotypical sense of older means wiser, which is
Therefore, the individuals outside the group of being young to middle-aged are oppressed due to the converse of the reasons listed above. Some of the reasons listed are tied to one another such as being technologically literate with not needing constant medical attention and being open-minded in conditions like the work force. Those outside the group, such as the elderly, are faced with oppression here. Although, “the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the number of workers fifty-five years and older is expected to increase by 47% during the period from 2006 to 2016” (Han & Richardson, 2015), they would eventually feel marginalized. People who are older than fifty-five are denied opportunities to participate in the work force because of their age.
Within business organizations, aging is something that is inevitable and unique to all people. Business practices need to be in the best interest of an organization, which is also inclusive to the employees, stakeholders, and customers in which they rely on and cater to. Best business practices, both directed and implied (regardless of the location) dictates that businesses follow and adhere to federal, state, city, and other local policies. However we needn’t look too far to see the multiple lawsuits that show continued and practiced bias and prejudice. One such incident involving discriminatory practices involving ageism that will be discussed within this discussion will revolve around a Texas Roadhouse restaurant based in Palm Bay, Florida.
Age discrimination has become more than a minor inconvenience throughout the twentieth century; indeed, the issue has become such a hot potato within the workplace that laws have been forced into existence as a means by which to address the problem. In order to help protect those who stand to be singled out and let go because of the unfairness of ageism, the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) was designed with the older employee in mind.
Elderly folks are eminently mature and have the finest instinct about what is right and wrong though It’s challenging to change someone’s point of view in a matter like this. When such injustice takes place, it de-motivates senior workers from their work. In an article over Ageists by Vincent J Roscigno, he states facts about different views on older Americans in general and in workplaces such as, “most of the population consists of biases and preconceptions, and the accused are unashamed in their views of older Americans. Those who believe that younger employees have much more value than senior employees are inserting a strong assumption based on their age. “Ageist attitudes and discrimination is what results in lower levels of overall organizational commitment to older workers, and a “push” out of a particular workplace.” Just because of an older employee’s depiction, such unfairness circulates in workplaces which cause false impressions of older
For an example “The common theme is a fear or a reluctance to hire people under 30, because they are unpredictable, and, ‘they don’t know how to work,’” says Cam Marston (Wooldridge). In the same way this goes along with older people seemly more intelligent, Reliable instead of collage kids which briefly explains why it’s hard to find a job in that sense. Additionally labeling helps discriminate millennia’s especially if from older employees example “Wilkie notes that it’s common for older workers to see younger workers as a threat, and take the easy way out by labeling them as somehow different” (Wooldridge). Hence the reason the older won’t like the younger because of the fear being replaced so they start shaming millennia’s. This is important because ageism is seriously a huge common stereotype in a sense people might judge you on because they feel
Stossel and Mastropolo’s thesis did not come until at the middle of the article when they talked about how Murray Schwartz is convinced “that older people can do the job just as well as younger people and believes that employment age discrimination laws are a crucial protection for older workers” (paragraph 11). With this issue, there are two sides of argument in this article: one is from the corporate as to why it is a necessity to fire people when they come of age, and the second one is from the workers being affected at this age discrimination. There are several people applying for jobs these days and a company attempts to fill that job with the best qualified person. If a per...
Attitudes are the foundation of quality of care for older adults. Among health care professionals, discrimination and stereotypical behaviors are very prevalent, even though more often than not these individuals do not realize their actions are ageist. “Ageism hinders people from seeing the potential of aging, anticipation their own aging, and being responsive to the needs of older people” (McGuire, Klein & Shu-Li, 2008, p. 12). Attitudes are directly correlated with how individuals age and whether individuals stay health and live longer (McGuire, Klein & Shu-Li, 2008, p. 12). The care that older adults receive from healthcare professionals is directly influenced by that provider’s attitude about growing older. All too often, health care providers rely on a patient’s chronological age rather than their functional age when determining their needs and what interventions are prescribed. Another issue lies in providers viewing the complaints of older patients as a part of “normal aging”, therefore potentially missing life-threatening problems that may have been easily resolved. “Age is only appropriate in health treatment as a secondary factor in making medical decisions, and it should not be used as a stand-alone factor” (Nolan, 2011, p. 334).
We are as old as we think. Do I think age discrimination exist? Yes, Do I believe the elderly act like what I see on television? No. My mother is 65 years old and she is nothing like we see on television. She gardens every morning, walk everyday, dance, eat listen to the same music, and knows how to use the Internet. My mother is a grandmother to 12 grandchildren and 1 great grandchild she watches them dance and play with them each day, my mother has more energy than I
Age discrimination issue is getting serious with the modernization and industrialization of the United States. However, the issue did not catch policy makers’ attention until WWII (1939-1945). The following part shows the time prior the Age Discrimination of Act 1967.
305). Society is constantly bombarded by messages informing us about how to reduce the signs of aging, instead of accepting the natural process (Germov, 2014, p. 305). These beliefs have lead to ageism being very common in society. Ageism is best defined as the negative attitudes, which are associated with the aging process (Novak, 2006, p. 3). Ageism involves an individual or group being stereotyped and experiencing discrimination due to their biological age (Novak, 2006, p. 3). This discrimination can be direct or indirect discrimination, victimisation or harassment (Johnson, 2013, p. 27). Unlike other individuals and groups who are stereotyped and discriminated against, those who are making these comments will one day themselves be of old
This strategy aims to employ workers from different backgrounds to provide tangible and intangible benefits for the business. The employers are the ones who control everything from the wage, promotions, incentives and the termination of the older counterparts. They are increasingly concerned about updated skills, physical demands, early retirement, and the cost of maintaining an older worker. Despite how employers may feel, companies cannot afford to neglect talent at any age. The employer should take advantage of the skills that the older employee posses, and carefully position them in jobs that matches their skill level as well as the job to be done. “Regardless of the change organizations make in the structure and functioning of the workplace of the future, it appears likely that older workers will play a crucial role (Hedge,Borman,& Lammlein, 2006). Different acts and laws are governed to respond to any discrimination against older employees in the workforce. Employment agencies, labor unions, local, state and Federal government are bound by these laws such as: Older Workers Benefits Protection Act (OWBPA); The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Older Americans Act (OAA), to name a few. Funds for service by the Congress are provided in forms of grants for various programs yearly. States, counties, and cities recognize the value of the servicing and are generous in providing additional funds, benefits and in-kind economic benefits too. Because area and state agencies on aging are doing very little in a way to use mass media to promote themselves, the aging network is probably missing a large number of disadvantage people who should be receiving services but who are unaware of them. Much more emphasis has been placed on tying together the federal services for the older workers, but it should not have taken a federal initiative to make states see
...fluence whether the message sent and the message received are one in the same. These screens are composed of the personal factors each person brings to the conversation, such as gender, culture, and age differences as discussed previously. The extent to which these screens are open or closed significantly influences both the sent and received messages. By keeping the previous mentioned points in mind when communicating with co-workers in different age groups when communicating; speaking and listening; internal conflict can be reduced greatly.
Age discrimination continues to be a problem for both men and women that are over the age of 40 in the workforce. In year 1967, the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act ADEA was passed to prohibit discrimination against workers over age 40 and older. Another law in the year 1964, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of sex, race, color, religion, or national origin. However there are still age discrimination and it seems to be more especially for older women more than older men. The Federal and the state should implement more regulations to protect workers' rights in all age groups, both in the younger and older generation including their race and gender.