All of a sudden I worry about ageism

[cantdrv55]

A buddy and mentor got the pink slip week before Christmas. He is 55 and I am 49. He and I probably make the same, maybe I edge him out by $10k but not much more. He is by no means a poor performer. I would say he is about a 7 or 8 in a scale of 1 to 10 as far as production goes. He had an absolutely year last year but in 2011, he was just a little above average. I can't understand why he got the boot but we are speculating that it has to do with his age and level of income. There are younger people coming up that will be as good as we are in about 5 years. My buddy's customers love him but they will learn to love the young guns too eventually.

I decided to resume my MBA education after a year long hiatus due to my crazy business travel schedule. I don't know what else I should do to make sure I am still marketable when I reach 55. I have not had a bad performance year in the twelve years I've been in this line of work. I've won a couple of awards and was recently promoted again to a high visibility, individual contributor position. I dunno. Maybe I am just paranoid but per Andrew Grove, "Only The Paranoid Survive".

Do you think or worry about ageism?

[Hugh R]

Yes/No. I'm in a pretty specialized field, I think there are maybe 15-20 people in the World that do what I do, and I think I know just about all of them. Its not particularly complex, but it is very specialized and you aren't going to step into my job without contacts and years of experience. I'm going to be 59 at the end of the month, I have about 5 years until I "retire". I have an MBA, but don't use it for the most part.

[scottmandue]

Yes,

My wife is starting to look for work, one of the online questionnaires asked "are you over 40?"

I'm 55 and in a very secure but low to mid paying job and fear to look for more money in a less secure job.

[pitargue]

When I rented a space at one of those rental spaces, the assistant manager was an elderly fellow. Very nice and talkative. Seems his car repair business went bust. Couldn't find a job except for the part time position at the rental place. He said he understood the age discrimination because when he had his own business (in California) he would not hire older people due to the increased health care costs. Now he was on the other side experiencing the same thing.

If you think you have it bad, it's much worse in sillycone valley in the high tech field. All the facebook/google/et.al workforce is under 30 and all stinking rich.

[SeanPizzle]

I absolutely worry about it. I watched both my father and step-father tossed from companies in their early 50's with 25+ and 20+ (respectively) years of experience. They both struggled to reinvent themselves and I watched it crush their personalities and self-worth. It became very apparent to me that there is no corporate loyalty and I adjusted my strategy based on this knowledge.

I am now 44 and, by all indicators, in my peak earning years until about 50-52. I sell IT gear and when I look around, I don't see many guys in their fifties in my industry. I do, however, see a lot of guys in their early 30s wanting what I have. They have no families, will entertain customer's with hookers and blow 6 nights a week (OK, maybe a little hyperbole) and will work the longer hours. To be quite honest, I am scared s**tless of not having enough money to retire or having hyper-inflation/crash of the US dollar and economy. I have a 9 year old at home and a stay-at-home-mom and even with a very strong income still focus on dumping as much money as possible in my retirement account.

But here is some upside: Gen Y absolutely lacks the foresight, work ethic and ability to delay gratification to compete with us. Youth may have energy, but we have experience, rolodex's and treachery on our side.

[RWebb]

I don't worry about it personally, but it is pretty common in business these days, and has been rampant in universities for decades.

[vash]

"ageism" learned a new word!!

if it happens..teach them "rageism"!

[atcjorg]

55 1/2 mandatory retirement in 6 months, but not a surprise , time for more welding courses at the cc, wrenching on the car, golf and fishing

[wdfifteen]

Sorry to hear about your friend. I understand in some industries there is a point on the income/production curve where it doesn't make economic sense to keep an employee. My folks are valued for their ability to do their tasks and aren't judged on the income they produce. Their only issue with "ageism" is absenteeism due to health. I haven't had to face that with anyone yet, but I can see it coming.

[Jim Bremner]

At age 35 I was told that "We hired X guy becouse he's younger and cooler than you"

Sadly I'm 46 and shutting down my biz and and looking for work when in the past I would turn down offers 3-4 times a year.

Anyone need a purchasing agent or Sales rep in So Cal?

Jim

[gsxrken]

I think you're right to worry, if it gets you to add skills to what you offer an employer. In my last company, I pointed out to our HR VP that there was almost no 20 somethings or 50 somethings. She agreed with the observation. The outsourcing and contractor work is killing the 20-something's onramp to corporate employment, and the pace, pay-scale, and rate of change seem to combine for a perfect storm on Mr. 55 year old.
Network before you need your network. Seriously. Even if it doesn't come easy to you.

[Schrup]

No, I'm more concerned with having my pension stolen. I still have plenty of skills to include a CDL. I could run a hoe at 60.

[red-beard]

Anyone who doesn't take a lump-sum pension payout is crazy!

[Rot 911]

I believe a lot of average working people in their 50's are scared, and they have every right to be. Most really don't have marketable skills and being old and unemployed has to be one of the worst feelings in the world.

[ckelly78z]

The company can't steal your pension unless it goes out of business or is bought up by another company. Even if you are fired or quit, that pension is gaurenteed to be there for you when you retire assuming the company is still around.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by ckelly78z

The company can't steal your pension unless it goes out of business or is bought up by another company. Even if you are fired or quit, that pension is gaurenteed to be there for you when you retire assuming the company is still around.

Check out the pensions of EVERY major airline in the USA.

[atcjorg]

Originally Posted by red-beard

check out the pensions of every major airline in the usa.

+1

[sammyg2]

"ageism" is illegal. Hopefully any company that engages in it does so poorly so there is a paper trail that will stand up in court.

In the mean time, us old folks should make sure our decades of experience directly result in exceptional performance, and make ourselves invaluable by proving we can solve problems and create solutions the whipper-snappers can't do using a smart phone.

[Cannonball996]

I dont hire anyone full time, I dont hire anyone over 40.

[porsche4life]

Originally Posted by Hugh R

Yes/No. I'm in a pretty specialized field, I think there are maybe 15-20 people in the World that do what I do, and I think I know just about all of them. Its not particularly complex, but it is very specialized and you aren't going to step into my job without contacts and years of experience. I'm going to be 59 at the end of the month, I have about 5 years until I "retire". I have an MBA, but don't use it for the most part.

Need an apprentice?