More and more people are working beyond retirement age, but many older workers claim they are the victims of ageism.
According to a new research a significant number of those questioned admitted to lying about their age, and even if they get the job, believe they are not offered the same opportunities as younger workers.
The poll of 2,000 workers aged 45-plus by Working Wise, a website supporting older people looking for work, found 44 per cent admitted to altering their age on their CV to make them seem more attractive to employers.
The research revealed one-in-three (34 per cent) older workers claimed they had experienced ageism during the interview process.
The poll also showed that despite 85 per cent of older workers being open to learning new skills, more than half claimed they had been given no access to training ‘recently’, while 30 per cent believed training was mainly aimed at young people in their organisation.
Gillian Nissim, founder of workingwise.co.uk, said: “Our research has unveiled the blatant ageism that is alive and kicking in the recruitment of older workers. Times have changed significantly, we are living and working for longer, and our pensions are getting pushed back too – and yet the cards are stacked against older workers who are trying to get back in.”
The Working Wise research found 95 per cent of older workers said that a good work-life balance was important, while 76 per cent wanted a better work-life balance than they did when they were younger. More than half (51 per cent) said they would consider taking a role that was a job share.
Samantha Randall, an Associate Solicitor with Palmers, who specialises in employment law, explained: “Under The Equality Act 2010, age is one of the protected characteristics which means that an employee mustn’t be discriminated against because of their age and to do so is unlawful.
“Discrimination can also occur at the interview stage so if a candidate feels they have been rejected purely based on their age rather than their talents and ability to do the job, there may be grounds to seek legal redress.”
For help and advice on all employment matters including age discrimination in the workplace, please get in touch with our expert team.