“Sorry, you’re too old for this position,” “We’re looking for someone with less experience,” or “You’re overqualified.” With the entry of new generations into the labor market, the evolution of technologies and the addition of years of contributions in working life, there are many occasions in which the most experienced professionals have heard these statements. “They don’t take you into account for a specific position because they already consider you ‘old’ when you have extensive professional experience and optimal capabilities, but over 40 years old,” reflects Carlos Fernández Guerra, digital and social media director at Iberdrola, in this publication from LinkedIn that reached almost 25,000 likes.
Although the communicator emphasizes that this reality affects many workers in the digital sector, occupational ageism can also be extrapolated to other areas. According to the report
“From the age of 55 it is difficult to find a job when you lose it and from the age of 55 to 67 the professional career begins to become precarious again,” says Isabel M. Martínez, president of the HelpAge Spain Foundation, an organization that works for the promotion and defense of the rights of older people in Spain and in the world. “The economy of the 21st century will not work if we do not take advantage of the talent of its entire population,” she continues.
Age-related prejudices are still present. If it is said about younger people that they are not friends with overtime, jobs with little professional prospects or lending a shoulder when something gets complicated, workers over fifty are judged for not adapting to new technologies, for not having the capacity for recycling, interest or motivation to learn. “It is considered that what is old is not valid and from this great prejudice arise all those related to aging. It is believed that competitiveness and effectiveness are linked to the age of the workforce and that is not real,” explains the president of the HelpAge Spain Foundation.
Social media helps perpetuate these types of stereotypes. The work platform Fishbowl highlights in this Tiktok the questions that those who work with colleagues from the baby boom generation, those born between 1949 and 1968, must face: “Yes, I can edit that PDF”, “You have not attached the document in the mail” or “Noreen, you are muted. “We can’t hear you.”
Beyond the comicality of certain prejudices, the data indicates that seniors or silvers (over 55 years old) are proactive in the face of change: despite the fact that 9 out of 10 surveyed by the Adecco Foundation are willing to change sectors and While 83% would accept a job below their qualifications, the reality is that long-term unemployment skyrockets in this age group to 58%. The problem, according to Elsa Novo de Miguel, responsible for employment training projects at the Endesa Foundation, lies in how complicated it is for the silver to get back into work.
“When you are a person who has spent many years working in a company, you have not been able to develop the necessary skills to look for work. You don’t know how to use social networks and you experience everything with disproportionate anxiety and anguish,” says Novo de Miguel. SAVIA was inaugurated in 2018 to alleviate that. With more than 43,000 registered seniors, this Endesa Foundation and More Human Foundation project seeks to promote the employability of those over 50 years of age and promote a cultural change in favor of the professionalism of this population sector through training, resources and job offers. .
“We have done surveys at SAVIA and we found a maximum percentage of people willing to change jobs, learn new skills and train. There are young people who don’t want to learn anything and older people who don’t want to learn anything. It is more of a personality characteristic than a generational quality,” shares Elsa Novo de Miguel.
Generation Z, young people born between 1997 and 2012, already represents a significant portion of the workforce in Spain. According to data provided by the National Institute of Statistics on the employed population in the last quarter of 2023, 14.6% of workers are under 30 years of age. Meanwhile, the percentage of employed baby boomers reaches 21%. These figures confirm a reality: in most companies, several generations coexist with different interests, habits, skills and behaviors; which makes coexistence difficult.
“The ideal is for there to be generational diversity in companies. Young people can benefit greatly from the mentoring and help of these people and, in turn, seniors from the youth, freshness and capabilities of younger people,” says Elsa Novo de Miguel. But how can we guarantee work environments where each generation contributes its value and knowledge?
In a context like the current one, where Zetas and baby boomers coexist in the offices, companies face a major challenge: managing diversity between generations. The challenge, present for some time, seems to have gained greater strength over the years. According to a study by the consulting firm Grant Thornton, 55% of Spanish businesses perceive problems of generational coexistence in their staff and 56% attribute it to the digital divide.
María Ucieda, specialist in training and people development, emphasizes that, given the digital skills of centennials, companies have the need to integrate new knowledge, innovate and digitize. “Not only at the level of processes and tools, but also at the level of communication and new forms of interaction and teamwork,” she argues. If they do not do so, they run the risk of being left behind, which would mean problems with recruitment, talent, a decrease in competitiveness or difficulty in generational change.
To avoid this, Ucieda emphasizes that it is important that the most experienced generations understand adaptation to new technologies as an opportunity, and not a challenge. “No generation by itself is a threat, only those people who do not evolve are at risk. It is these profiles that yesterday, today and tomorrow will have a short journey,” reflects the trainer.
Thus, the word intergenerational stands as the solution, according to Juan Carlos Alcaide, sociologist and expert in the silver economy. “Companies should adopt strategies focused on inclusion, flexibility and fluid communication,” he continues. The specialist recommends implementing training and development programs that address both digital and soft skills, encouraging internal communication between teams, promoting cross-mentoring to encourage knowledge exchange, and adapting labor policies to offer work options that respond to needs of a diverse workforce. If not, warns Alcaide, “shrimp that falls asleep will be carried away by the current.”