Australia is facing a rise in ageism, with 24% of HR professionals now considering workers aged 51 to 55 as “older,” a significant increase from previous years.
In Short
- Worsening Age Bias: Around 24% of HR professionals now classify workers aged 51 to 55 as "older," raising significant entry barriers for experienced candidates.
- Recognised Yet Overlooked: Employers acknowledge older candidates' reliability and deep knowledge, yet one in six organisations refuses to hire individuals aged 65 and above.
- Tech Stereotypes Persist: A quarter of employers cite a perceived lack of digital skills as a hiring hurdle, despite older professionals demonstrating strong adaptiveness to new technology.
- Calls for Reform: Advocates are pushing for age-neutral job ads, skills-based hiring, and flexible work options to unlock vital labor force participation.
- Market Barrier: This shift creates barriers for experienced professionals in a labour market with high job vacancies.
- Valued Attributes vs. Hiring Reality: Despite recognising older workers’ valuable attributes, these perceptions often don’t lead to fair hiring:
- Experience: 64–85%
- Professional knowledge: 63–71%
- Loyalty: 74%
- Reliability: 64%
- In-Built Prejudice:
- 1 in 6 organisations will not consider hiring individuals aged 65 and above.
- Only 25% of organisations are open to hiring older workers "to a large extent".
- Job Seeker Experiences: Many older job seekers report being overlooked once their age becomes apparent or being told a role would be "too tiring".
Recruitment obstacles, such as a lack of older worker applicants, high salary expectations, and candidates having too much experience, contribute to the challenges faced by older job seekers. A quarter of employers (25%) also cite a perceived lack of technology skills as a barrier, ignoring that many older Australians have mastered new technologies and can learn well into their mid-70s. The Age Discrimination Commissioner emphasises, “we won’t solve the productivity problem… unless we increase the labour force participation rate significantly.”
At Talentology’s Virtual Jobseeker Café, over 50 older tech jobseekers share stories of being “ghosted” by recruitment professionals and applying through job boards like Seek. Their experiences are harrowing, with years of un- or under-employment after applying for hundreds, sometimes over a thousand, of jobs.
In an AI-driven age, older job seekers often find themselves passed over without explanation, highlighting the need for more transparent hiring practices. Trevor Churchley, founder of Talentology, ran a LinkedIn campaign with the hashtag #noageismintech, highlighting that ageism is a silent issue.
He states, “Ageism is the silent ism. We hear it every week in our Job Seeker Café—brilliant, experienced professionals ghosted, overlooked, or written off purely because of age. It’s not just unfair, it’s a productivity killer for Australia. We can’t solve a skills shortage by sidelining the very people who helped build the industry.”
Addressing this requires age-neutral job ads, skills-based hiring, flexible work arrangements, and career-transition support. Leveraging Australia’s multi-generational workforce by challenging stereotypes and biases is crucial for boosting productivity and well-being.
Have you experienced ageism in your job search, or would you like to join the Job Seeker Café?
