Age Discrimination

Paper Summary:

This paper explains that older workers, who are generally considered to be better employees, but usually receive higher salaries than younger workers because of their longevity in the company, are being excluded from the work force by U.S. businesses. The author points out that, while it is legal to fire or lay off people as a cost-cutting measure, business decisions, such as downsizings, job insecurity, increased use of part-time and contract employees, and greater reliance on automation have created a corporate culture that makes older workers expendable. The paper relates that, in Europe, this problem is being handled in a more humane manner and states that, with the shortage of warm bodies to fill entry-level jobs in the U.S., and with the problems of balancing Social Security, it is unlikely age discrimination would be a feature of U.S. work life if the American population, as a whole, was not so dedicated to extolling youth.

Table of Contents
The Current Extent of the Problem
History of the Problem
Chart: Older Workers vs. Younger Workers
How the Aging Employee Issue Is Handled Elsewhere
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"IBM-Big Blue-has also been in the 'older worker' hotspot, although allegedly for a retiree, rather than a worker, problem. In 1999, IBM was switching its pension plan to a cash-balance plan rather than a traditional plan. Dave Finlay was calculating his future pension benefits and realized that he would receive more than 30% less under the new plan than under the old one. Finlay ran a spreadsheet program to compare the old and new retirement benefits. After spending what he calculated to be bout 2,000 hours on the project, he posted his spreadsheet process on a Web site so that other IBMers to calculate their own benefits potentials."

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