Age Discrimination & Hybrid Working – An Interview Study
Written by Letitia Leong, fourth-year Psychology student at Ucl
This experiment was conducted as part of MoreThanNow’s Summer Research Prize. We awarded four students a small grant to conduct a research project on the workplace. Our intention was to provide up and coming researchers with a unique opportunity to conduct research outside academia and promote applied behavioural science in the real world.
Over the last year, age discrimination cases in England and Wales have risen by a staggering 30%. One government report revealed that older workers are regularly the victims of age discrimination and are disproportionately more likely to be selected for redundancy, while psychologists from OE Cam have warned about the unintended impact of hybrid work resulting in the exclusion of older workers.
With a demographic shift towards an ageing workforce and changing work patterns, are employers equipped to handle age discrimination under hybrid work? As part of the MTN Research Prize, I aimed to explore this issue:
Age discrimination clearly poses emotional, financial and organisational consequences. It is an issue that needs to be addressed.
Letitia Long, UCL Student and MTN Summer Research Prize Winner
The Interview Study
To carry out the study, I interviewed 11 participants aged over 50 who stated that they have experienced age discrimination whilst working hybrid. Participants varied in the sectors they worked in (eg. IT and education) and the positions they held within the organisation (eg. Individual contributor and management).
My Findings
‘What is your experience of age discrimination?’
With increased reliance on technology at the onset of hybrid work, some interviewees had struggled to meet these technological demands and received ageist remarks, such as “you’re over the hill”. Even so, others who were proficient in technology also experienced similar remarks as their colleagues negatively stereotyped their IT abilities based on their age. Many felt that hybrid work had exacerbated the occurrence and plausibility of such openly discriminatory behaviour.
Another common experience was the lack of promotion and hiring opportunities which were favoured towards younger workers. One noted subtle cues which companies use when posting vacancies to deliberately target younger workers, including certain adjectives such as “high-energy” and “self-starter”. These adjectives have especially appeared more in recent hybrid working vacancies, highlighting the reduced hiring opportunities for older workers.
Furthermore, other experiences included subtle age-related redundancy threats. Some recount experiences of their manager overworking them and purposefully placing obstacles as a test to encourage them to leave. Many voiced the disadvantage of hybrid work as the nature of the working-style meant that it was easier for them to be pushed out.
‘How did these experiences impact you?’
As a result of these experiences, many felt alienated, depressed and uncomfortable. One sadly expressed “I grew up in an era where we went into the workforce with the anticipation that all of the past discrimination wouldn’t be there, only to find that it was”. A lot of the interviewees had also committed a lengthy time at their organisation and felt helpless to leave. Feelings of frustration were also voiced due to the difficulty of proving age discrimination and therefore filing a complaint with the appropriate evidence.
Besides the emotional impact, one had reflected upon the financial impact as they disclosed the lost promotion opportunities leading them to be poorer with a worse pension. In addition, it is important to note the negative organisational consequences due to increased disengagement, a loss of motivation and productivity.
‘How would you prevent or reduce age discrimination?’
Many highlighted simple mechanisms which they believed an employer can implement to alleviate age discrimination under hybrid work. These included step-by-step guides to aid with the new technology and physical adjustments such as bigger screens. Some also suggested occasional in-person team training exercises to decrease isolation and promote teamwork; this may also aid in reducing any generational tensions or differences.
Regular anonymous feedback forms can also be useful to enable older workers to highlight any issues and incorporate their viewpoint in the decision-making process. This can be used alongside management training interventions to develop certain qualities, such as empathy when working with minority groups.
Many also expressed their dislike towards quotas as decisions should be based on suitability and that affirmative action to hire more older workers may cause more resentment. This suggests that conventional methods to increase diversity may not be easily applied to age, thus measures should be carefully considered.
Implications
While this study has highlighted some experiences of age discrimination, there will be many others with their own experiences to share. Drawing from my findings, age discrimination clearly poses emotional, financial and organisational consequences. It is an issue that needs to be addressed.
Organisational interventions such as management training can aid in tackling this issue, but the success of the intervention will be dependent on the organisation and the individual workers. Therefore, it is important to establish a communication system with workers to gauge an understanding of the problems arising. Overall, older workers are an important asset to an organisation, therefore with changing work patterns, it is important to develop interventions to promote inclusivity and create a positive working environment for all.
The MoreThanNow View
We are so proud of Letitia and her research; she highlights such an interesting research area/research gap and gave us an insight into the lived experiences of people facing age discrimination. On reflection, it’s an area we haven’t focused enough on in the past, and Letitia’s research has certainly inspired us to seek new partnerships and experiments in this important area of diversity and inclusion!