Employees who are over 45 years old and belong to the so-called Generation X could become the biggest losers of the pandemic. As shown by a study by the non-profit organization Generation, they are facing the highest unemployment rate in history on a global level. In addition to the pandemic threatening their job positions, it has also spurred so-called 'ageism', or age discrimination. The fact that employees between 45 and 60 years old are the least likely to acquire new skills does not help, and during the new crisis, there is the least demand for staff of their age.
Better than Younger
The study was conducted by the organization during March and May of this year, involving 3,800 employed and unemployed individuals aged between 18 and 60, as well as 1,400 managers from seven countries worldwide. Although the respondents came from different markets such as the USA, the United Kingdom, India, or Italy, they share the common feeling that representatives of Generation X feel neglected and have the hardest time finding jobs – the largest share of the long-term unemployed is aged between 45 and 60 years. Additionally, the surveyed managers for those over 45 claim that they are the least prepared for certain positions and have the weakest previous experiences.
As reported by CNBC, researchers are also concerned about the data regarding the unwillingness of older candidates to master new technologies (38 percent), disinterest in learning new skills (27 percent), and difficulties in working with other generations (21 percent). These data are particularly surprising considering that older employees are often more capable than younger ones. Or, more precisely, nine out of ten surveyed managers stated that employees over 45 are equally good, if not better, than younger ones.
