Older job seekers: Give us a chance

Coronavirus redundancies have not discriminated when it comes to age. Everyone from apprentices to executives have had their roles made redundant in the past few months, but is it harder for older job seekers to pick themselves up and get another position?

Bruce* (not his real name) turned 70 this year and has 40 years of experience in logistics “but I put down 30 years of experience in my CV just in case that’s the problem”. Accustomed to contract work, his last period of employment ended a year ago and jobs that were on the horizon fell through as the coronavirus pandemic hit. Today, he can list off the applications he has sent, that were lower pay, less responsibility, even one he was employed to do as a six-month contract last year, and still didn’t get an interview for.

“I don’t want to retire. I like to work, and I’ve got a stack of ideas for improvement,” he tells Get Hired Australia.

“It hurts when no one will even have the basic decency to get back to you to say: ‘Thanks I got your CV’. Is it ageism? I don’t know.”

The Benevolent Society’s EveryAGE Counts co-chair Robert Tickner says ageism is “widespread” in Australia.

“It remains one of the only socially sanctioned forms of discrimination left,” he tells Get Hired Australia. “Australians have the legal right to participate in work for as long as they choose. However almost a third of Australians over 50 years say they have experienced ageism in the workplace.”

A 2018 report by the Australian Human Resources Institute found that 30% of respondents indicate their organisation has an age above which they are reluctant to recruit workers and 68% of respondents agreed there was an unwillingness to hire workers over the age of 50. LinkedIn research shows 44% of Baby Boomers believe their age is the main reason for employers rejecting their job applications.

Career coach Sarah Felice founded a company in outplacement – helping people find the next step after a job has ended, often from redundancy. Her top tip is to stay positive.

“A lot of the time, how you get treated is your opinion of yourself. If you feel your age is a barrier, sometimes it becomes a barrier. If, on the other hand, you don’t really think about it, others tend to think the same."

"It’s not as simple as that but I do feel your mindset plays a big part in job hunting.”

She says the challenge of getting another job is different for older people.

“One of the bigger challenges is when people’s jobs are made redundant a few years from retirement. Are they ready to retire? My father always said: ‘It’s not what you retire from, it’s what you retire to’. If they’re not ready to retire, it can be an emotional conversation.

“One area that I believe is about to become a big growth area is interim executives. A lot of organisations are restructuring and thinking about what they are going to need to set themselves up for the future. They’ll be looking for interim executives to steer that change and they like people at the tail end of their career as it’s their choice as opposed to people who are looking to turn it into a transition.”

Felice says older job seekers should start with their CV.

“Don’t focus on age and certainly never put your date of birth on resume. Never give people an opportunity to focus on anything other than your skills."

"You’ve really got to understand what you bring to the table and be strategic in your job search. Who are you targeting? What is your unique value proposition? Why should I choose you for my shortlist as opposed to other people? Really be specific about what you have to offer because everyone has something unique to offer.”

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JobKeeper will be extended until the end of March for several million Australian workers. The lengthening of the program comes with a caveat, however, with recipients to undergo an eligibility test, The SMH writes. The JobSeeker unemployment benefit will also receive an extension.

Year-on-year hiring is slowly improving, as long as conditions hold. LinkedIn senior economist APAC lead Pei Ying Chua says: “We’re seeing the recovery sustain and continue through June, with the year-on-year hiring rate currently hovering just below -20% year-on-year.”

Some businesses continue to hire and grow. These were the top employers in May in order of total number of hires, with the bars demonstrating month-on-month growth.

Who is hiring right now? Well, Expedia for one. Check out this list of companies hiring 10 roles or more across Australia.

LinkedIn member Tom Lowe is sharing what he learned after being made redundant. He says:

Draw up a budget and figure out how much it costs to operate 'Me, Inc'. This task won’t be fun. In my case, I dramatically slashed my expenses, negotiated lower rent with my landlord and applied for Centrelink. Forget the guilt associated with doing this. We’re in a global recession!

Missed last week's #GetHiredAustralia? Here's whether to accept a job or negotiate.

Additional reporting: Andrew Murfett.

*Bruce prefers to use a pseudonym as he is actively looking for work.