Ageism: an age old problem

Superdry hit the headlines quite recently for all the wrong reasons. An Employment Tribunal in July found the company had discriminated against an employee based on her age (she was her 50’s) when they denied her promotion and progression in favour of younger less experienced colleagues. This judgement was partly because Superdry managers made lots of assumptions about the low likelihood of her leaving them, based on her age. These assumptions proved expensive for Superdry as the claimant was awarded compensation of nearly £100,000. This case got us thinking about the prevalence of ageism in the workplace.

Age is a moving target
Age became a protected characteristic for the purpose of the Equality Act in 2006.  With other protected characteristics (sex, race, religion etc) you generally have the characteristic or you don’t, but age is different. We all have an age, but it changes during our lifetime - as do the types of age discrimination we might face as a worker as we age. For example, at 25 you might be told ‘you’re too young to be taken seriously’ or ‘you look so young for such an important job’.  This might turn into ‘you can’t teach an old dog new tricks’ or ‘you’ll never get used this this new technology’ for older employees. Add a few other casual assumptions like ‘he/she must have paid off their mortgage so won’t need a raise’ and ‘if they had it in them they’d have got to X position by now’ and you have a toxic ageism cocktail.

Ageisim is prevalent
Ageism is still very prevalent and seemingly widely accepted in UK society. Age discrimination is the most common form of discrimination in ALL age groups. According to the Centre for Better ageing, one-in-three people had experienced age discrimination, with the impact on physical and mental health being felt far more in older age groups. This impact is magnified for women and ethnic minorities.

The centre’s commentary on ageism in workplaces made for interesting reading. Older workers are viewed as having lower performance levels, less ability to learn and generally as more costly. The media surely does not help with its litany of negative attitudes.

This ageism is a particular problem for our rapidly ageing society. The number of people over 65 will increase by 40% within the next 20 years. Against this backdrop there are reports that over 50’s have left their workplaces in droves since the pandemic and now need to be tempted back to the workplace to stem the UK’s skills gaps and inflation crisis.     

Tackling ageism at all levels of society is going to be critical. Workplaces will be no exception. We need to keep people employed and financially contributing for as long as possible.

A reminder not to make assumptions
The Superdry case and our rapidly ageing population makes it a good time to reflect.  Are there people in your organisation who are identified as being a ‘low flight risk’ due to their age? Are they effectively being overlooked?  When our team discussed this case, we could all think of people we’d worked with in the past who’ve had similar labels applied. Assumptions around anyone’s careers aspirations are dangerous - not just with older people - we often see it applied to women who are pregnant or who have young children too.

The moral of the story is, don’t fall into this trap. It could be both expensive and bad for business. Ensure that you have inclusive policies and a non-discriminatory approach to progression. Superdry thought it did but it didn’t save the company here.

It’s vital to have good honest conversations with all members of your team about their career aspirations. You may not be able to fulfil their every wish but it will mean you avoid making assumptions.

An accusation of age discrimination is costly. If you are taken to Employment Tribunal and lose, potential compensation for the claimant is limitless and legal costs defending a claim could be anywhere between £20,000-£40,000.  But it is also costly in management time and grief (time-consuming investigations and grievance procedures which detract from all your other business priorities), damage to your brand and importantly how you are perceived by your employees.