Earnings Start To Decline In Middle Age Due to Age Discrimination

Swedish study shows age discrimination is becoming "an increasingly pressing issue" for developed countries as workforce ages

Photo by Peter van Eijk on Unsplash

A major reason that age discrimination is epidemic and unaddressed is that it is often viewed - wrongly - as a problem for old people.

A group of Swedish researchers conducted a systemic review of literature on age discrimination and concluded that workers begin facing difficulties in the labor market in middle age, when their income begins to decline “distinctly.”

By age 50, the researchers say, workers face lower chances of attaining and holding employment and the problem just gets worse each year.

The researchers say a major problem is bias by recruiters who question workers’ flexibility/adaptability, ambition and ability to learn new tasks starting at age 40 (forty!). Some managers view older workers as less productive or in poorer physical shape.