Introduction
The process of hiring employees always depends on a number of factors. When an employer sets forth to hire employees, there are a number of factors that have to be put into consideration by the concerned employer in order to ensure that those that are recruited have the best capacity to meet the demands of the specific tasks. The world is changing very fast, and with this, firms are forced to be flexible.
They must be able to change with the changing external environment. Technology is the main agent of change, and as McMullin (56) notes, firms are under pressure to act in a way that will be able to satisfy the demands of the public in general, besides their customers. Employers are therefore, very keen to ensure that they have the best workforce.
Age discrimination during the process of recruiting employees has been an issue for a very long time. Employers are looking for specific qualities in employees when hiring them.
One of the leading characteristics that employers look for is the ability to be flexible and change with changes that take place in the external environment. The other very important factor that they always put into consideration is the ability to understand the emerging technologies. Firms have realized that they cannot survive if they ignore the emerging technology in the market.
They therefore, need employees who have understanding of these technologies in order to enable the firm run smoothly and manage market competition. These are characteristics that are lacking in the aging population. These characteristics are commonly found on young college graduates who are freshly getting into the job market. This paper seeks to investigate discrimination during the hiring process on the basis of age and gender, with special focus on the older female employees.
Discrimination of Employees Based on Age and Gender
According to McMullin (28), the baby boomers are headed for retirement. The number of this group is massive and they have been actively been engaged in various employments for all that period. Their departure may have a massive effect on the economy of this country. Once they retire, they will have to depend on the working class for their survival. Yasgoor (93) explained that with improved health facilities, and better living standards, Americans have a longer life expectancy.
Having the baby boomers on retirement will mean that they will have to depend on those who are working to offer them the security they need. The social security fund will be put under a massive pressure to ensure that these huge numbers of retirees are taken care of. It is on this basis that some economists have advised that the aging population should be retained in the job market as long as it may be possible. This will help ease pressure on the working population, and ensure that the society is not heavily dependent on the working population.
The biggest concern however, comes when the aging populations are force to look for new jobs. When employers are recruiting, there is always some form of bias in their choices. As was stated above, these employers are looking for young energetic individuals who are able to master the needed procedures in the dynamic market. This way, it becomes easy to manage the emerging trends in the market. Employing the aging population has been a big issue for employers under the current environment.
According to McMullin (29), employers also find it difficult to employ older people because of the respect that Americans have for the old. A chief executive officer who is 37 years old will find it challenging to hire an individual who is aged 60 years. This is because it will be difficult to issue orders to this individual who is old enough to be his father or mother. The employer will feel uncomfortable working with these older individuals as their juniors who are supposed to receive orders from them
The elderly women have found it very difficult to get employment after their retirement. This is especially so in the private sector. One of the most important characteristics needed in an employee is experience. Employees who are aging have the experience that is needed for various tasks. However, Lahey (48) notes that the current labor market needs more than just an experience. An airline company would need young women as air hostess and not the elderly women.
A hotel will hire younger and attractive women as waitress and not the elderly women. Every employer will explain that they need young individuals for various reasons. Not only are they more attractive and presentable to customers, they are also quicker in their actions and flexible in all the activities they undertake. It is important to look at some of the specific reasons why there is discrimination of employees in the current society.
Reasons for Discrimination of Employees on the Basis of Age
According to Yasgoor (112), the United States of America should find a way of putting their aging labor force into proper usage. It is uneconomical to retire a fifty-five year old employee who is still strong to go and start depending on the younger population while they still have the capacity to work. They should be allowed to work for a longer period in order to reduce the dependency rate in this country.
This scholar strongly urges the government to come up with initiative where it will be the biggest employer of this group. This is because the private sector has shown clear bias against the aging population when employing their workforce. A chance of a 61 year old woman passing an interview with younger women aged below 30 years is almost impossible. The following are some of the reasons why there is always bias during employment process.
Statistical Discrimination
Statistical discrimination is more inclined to benefit the aging population than the younger generation. It is a common phenomenon to see job advertisement demanding that an applicant should be having a specific minimum experience on a specific area. When an employer states that the desired candidate should have a minimum working experience of 15 years, the employer will be systematically eliminating the fresh college graduates who have below two years of experience.
This discrimination always arises from the fact that some employers believe that such experience in a specific tasks would place an individual in a better place to meet the demands of the job. Most of these positions are always senior managerial positions that needs sobriety in order to work with some success. The aging population therefore, ends up securing the job at the expense of the younger employees.
According to Yasgoor (85), the generations X and by extension Y, have characteristics that most traditional American firms do not admire. These are individuals who cannot afford to stay in one employment for a period of more than three years. They are restless individuals who feel that they should not be tied to one job for a long period. As a result, they prefer jobs that allow them to move conveniently from one place to another or from one task to another.
This means that if an employer spends on such individual through training and development, it becomes a real challenge to maintain that skill within the firm. Such an employee would easily move with that skill to a rival firm soon after acquiring it. This has made firms consider avoiding this group of employees, preferring the aging population. This form of discrimination is constantly on the decline as firms face the danger brought about by the need to embrace change.
Discrimination Based on Taste
This is currently the most common form of discrimination in the employment of different individuals to different tasks. This will always take place during the interview. During the interview, employers will always be looking at features beyond the details given on the resume and other academic credentials. Taste based discrimination can be looked at from a number of fronts.
Employer
As was explained above, employers are getting younger as time goes by. It is common to see an individual becoming a reputable chief executive of a firm at a tender age of about 27 years. When such employers are recruiting the workforce, age will always be a factor.
They will prefer younger individuals who are able to meet their demands and easily take their instructions without much problem. Such employers may also find the younger employees more attractive when it comes to managing customers. They will consider hiring the younger population for the purpose of creating an image for the firm in the market.
Employees
Employees may also dictate the type of other employees that a firm will employ. According to Lahey (53), the workplace is becoming more integrated than ever before. Employees must work as a team in order to achieve their objectives within the desired period. This scholar notes that younger employees would always feel uncomfortable working with older employees within their teams.
This is because they need freedom and the ability to share their life experience with their colleagues. This may not be possible if they are put with other employees who are older than them. Employers will therefore, be forced to hire younger employees who will easily work with the existing workforce.
Customers
In most industry in the United States, customers prefer being served by the younger employees. This is because of a number of reasons. First, these younger employees are very fast, facts that will enable the customer get the service within the desired time. It is also a fact that the younger generation is technologically advanced and therefore, is able to help customers in this area.
Then there is the physical attraction that the younger employees have above the aging employees. This has made the younger employees more attractive than the aging population, a fact that has seen the older employees find it difficult to secure job currently.
Works Cited
Lahey, Joanna. Age, Women, and Hiring An Experimental Study. The Journal of Human Resources, 2008. Vol. 43, no 1, pp. 31-55
McMullin, Julie. Age, Gender, and Work: Small Information Technology Firms in the New Economy. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2011. Print.
Yasgoor, Karen. Kaplan Human Resource Certification. New York: Kaplan, 2008. Print.