Ageism

The World of Youth

By Chelle Stockman

 

The workforce appears to get younger as you go from business to business, whether you go to a bank or to a department store.  Perhaps it is just that many of us are getting older.  None the less, people age fifty and over are not as prominent in the everyday workplace as they once were.  It used to be that when I walked into the library, the librarians were older people with younger interns working under them.  When I make my weekly trips to the libraries all over the bay area, I see younger faces.  Locally, that isn’t the case which is to their branch’s credit. 

 I have found that people over age fifty have more patience when I present my needs to them.  They tend to be more interested in helping me with my needs rather than anxious to get on to the next person, while the more youthful are quick at what they do and probably efficient by company standards; but in their efficiency, I often have to get back in line a few times.  I tend to get caught up in their hurried ways and feel some guilt that I’m taking up their time with issues that are only important to me.  So when I go in for special attention, I find myself searching for people a little older than I am to help me.  I suppose I do this because by virtue of their age, I believe they have more experience.  I also believe they have lived long enough to knowthat just because life transports us along at breakneck speeds, they are more focused on each situation as it arises.  They don’t seem to be multitasking when it’s my turn and they give me all their attention. I appreciate this about those approaching the title of “senior” citizen.

 

 Does this make me out to be someone who buys into ageism?  Yes, I suppose it does, but in my defense, I’ve been hurried through lines and out the door by our youth and made to feel like one of the many numbers that are served. More, more, more—hurry, hurry; time is money and all that. I don’t blame the youth for as I’ve said, they can be quite efficient and are kind to me in those 45 seconds as time allows. I do blame the companies they work for.  There ought to be some kind of balance.  I’m willing to stand in longer lines for those who can take the time to focus on my needs.  Those who are in a hurry can go to the faster lines.  I’ve got no problem with that.

 

The problem as I see it is that many of the companies I patronize don’t offer me that option.  In their fast paced quest for profits, they are guilty of ageist practices. Maturity Works reports that by 2010 forty percent of the work force will be age forty five or older and that eighty three percent of that age group will have their jobs compromised due to ageism in the work force. I was surprised to learn from NatCen’s Department Work and Pension report some of the trends which are responsible for the decline of people fifty or older in the work force.  Early pensions are offered to those not quite ready to retire and themessage seems to be “Fresh thinkers are more valuable than those with ‘outdated’ experience. Times they are a changing and we must be a step ahead of the rest.”  Another reason cited is that the companies who offer health care benefits are concerned about the rising cost admitting that as we age we are more likely to require more health care.  So their quest for profits short changes the faithful employees that were once highly valued.

This has had a devastating affect on my choices to be served by those with the experience I have come to respect and depend on.  In matters of problem solving which is what pulls me into a public realm, I require specialized assistance.  But what I’m offered are perky people in a hurry competing for their promotions; or in contrast, the young and lazy who act as though they  are bothered that I dare require more of them than ringing me up and sending me on my way. 

 

In my youth there was a standard held that required experience, something most youth does not yet possess.  We counted ourselves lucky to get hired on for training purposes.  It gave us a sense of pride when we exceeded the expectations and were granted full-time status including benefits.  We had to earn that right and it drove us to improve.  I don’t see evidence of that in today’s market and the meeting of my needs as a consumer is eroding.  The message that sends to me is that there is a higher value placed on the youthful consumer.  Ageist practices not only affect the work force but those who subscribe to them as well.

 

It is my hope that businesses will see this and consider the value of experience.  By doing so, they could serve a much broader base, guaranteeing them a higher consumer satisfaction.