Figures published by a Government body have revealed that hundreds of thousands of UK workers are suffering from age discrimination.
National statistics from the Citizenship Survey, which was produced by Communities and Local Government, revealed that three per cent of people across the country felt they had been rejected for a job they applied for because of their age. Breaking this down into different age groups, five per cent of those aged 16 to 24 and four per cent of those over 50 felt they had experienced this form of discrimination.
The latter figure amounts to over 300,000 older members of the workforce being refused a job because of their age.
The figures have been published as the Coalition Government is looking to increase the number of older workers entering the job market via its proposed changes to the welfare-to-work benefits. Michelle Mitchell, Charity Director, Age UK, comments: “Before forcing people to rejoin the job market or work for longer, the government must lay the foundations of a better job market for older people, with fairness and flexibility as cornerstones. The implementation of the Equality Act in October this year offers the Coalition Government an opportunity to refocus attention on the need to tackle age discrimination in the labour market once and for all.”
Article from HR Grapevine