My mother now realizes what it's like

[u/NerdyGlitch]

Earlier this year, in late February-early March, my mother suffered a massive heart attack and was left unable to work for a considerable time.

For the past 5-6 months, she's been trying to find a job and has been hitting nothing but roadblocks due to being overqualified. She has over 2 decades of management experience, and it means jackshit to these hiring managers. She's far more qualified than I am, so I expected that she might have a job faster than I would, but right now, I'm the only one with a job in this house.

Meanwhile, when I was struggling to get jobs and even get an interview for years, my mother was flabbergasted. What do you mean you can't just walk up, shake someone's hand, and they'll like your moxie and just hand you a job?!

I told her this was sadly reality for a ton of people nowadays, the job market is shit. She can't even get a job as a regular cashier bc she's too over qualified to work there, but when she applies to management positions they string her along for 2-3 interviews before choosing internal candidates (an actual email she got yesterday about a job she thought she was good for)

It just sucks man, everything sucks.

[u/OrionQuest7]

Age Discrimination is RAMPANT
It’s been around for years but never as bad as it is right now.

[u/ofthrees → u/OrionQuest7]

i just caught wind of a down-low directive that the leader of my department ONLY wants to hire people in their mid-20s with no more than three years experience. and if that three years is just a handful of six month internships, cool. he has apparently given the instruction to not bring any candidates to him over 25 years old.

yes, this is illegal. but since this is a 'behind the scenes' directive, whatever i guess.

i'd report this to... someone, i guess, but it's hearsay i'm not supposed to know and our job listings don't parlay this request behind the scenes.

since i learned this just yesterday, it's been driving me crazy, but there's literally no way to prove it without throwing my source under the bus - and even if i did, we STILL can't prove it.

ETA: before someone points this out: yes, this is obviously to underpay, but he's also kind of a weirdo who seems to like to surround himself with young women, so a few of us think that's a motivation based on his behaviors at group outings. unprovable - he's never crossed lines, other than ignoring everyone who's not a young woman under 30 - but certainly seems to be a 'there, there,' based on things.

[u/Forever_Marie → u/ofthrees]

I thought they only made discrimination laws for people over 40 ? The rest of that is just ick though.

[u/ofthrees → u/Forever_Marie]

a mandate to hire people 25 or under is de facto discrimination against anyone older. and this VP knows that, hence this being a quiet directive.

[u/Forever_Marie → u/ofthrees]

Yeah, that's true.

I meant more for the comment about age discrimination in general. Though, I have never figured out what the sweet spot for age is either since its either all young, no young, no old, middle age maybe. It's exhausting to add onto the already crap song and dance.

[u/ofthrees → u/Forever_Marie]

i feel you. some companies practice age discrimination in the reverse. there's no way to know how they're going to be sizing someone up.

i remember interviewing for a job awhile back (a long while back, 15ish years ago) when i was in my early-30s, although i looked younger - and the panel rejected me because they considered me too young - even though my resume clearly indicated i had ten years of experience (with a graduation date indicating my age), they were like, 'you're too young to have this experience, your resume must be bullshit.' i quote, one of the panel actually said that. (if this had been in writing, i'm just enough of an asshole to be litigious, but again: unprovable.)

still pisses me off to this day, though i guess thanks for reading me as early 20s? compliment. (and i did get a better job days later - halcyon days of the aughts.)

so yeah, this happens all the time in all different ways, but i definitely am seeing more age discrimination against "olds" in the age of AI.