Age discrimination in the workplace

[Woofy12]

A relative of mine is 58, almost 59 and has been out of work for around 9 months now.
He's been rejected from around 7 or 8 interviews in a row now which never seemed to happen when he was younger, he's a male nurse with decades of experience and they're supposed to be 'crying out for nurses'.

He quit his previous job as he moved away and then had an injury so couldn't work for a while. He has a good work history that I can see (never had any warnings, investigations etc) he prepares well for interviews, uses scenarios and so on but after every interview he is either not informed at all which I think is disgraceful, or told "you interviewed very well but we went with another candidate".

He tried agencies but they told him they didn't have much work, his mental health is suffering, he believes it's his age, even though it's supposed to be a protected characteristic.

I feel helpless, he's disheartened and feels like giving up. I feel like age may be a factor, but he's still got almost 10 years left of working life. Not sure what else to do really? I thought nursing was short-staffed but maybe not, and he's getting the interviews.

9 months is a long time. It's far more likely to be due to that than his age. It's an odd decision to quit a job without one to go to in the current economic climate. That would ring alarm bells for any potential employer. Risk aversion plays a big part in recruitment decisions and, sadly for your relative, he will present as a risk.

Can’t he work bank? At least gets him known in the trust. If it’s any consolation new nursing grads are finding it hard getting jobs, so don’t assume he’s being discriminated against. Maybe he interviews poorly?

The current job market is dreadful and there are many qualified and experienced professionals who are struggling to find suitable roles and it can takes months or more to secure something as jobs attract so many applicants.

There is nothing odd either about leaving a job if you are relocating to a completely different area and commuting is no longer an option.

It is also naive as well to think that someone close to 60 is not going to come across ageism which is rife in the workplace.

I’m surprised he can’t get agency/bank work.

I would be wondering if you have the full story here…

Would he be open to working in drug and alcohol
services? They often need nurses, even better if he can prescribe, though not necessary in most posts.

He rang an agency and they told him they aren't getting a lot of work. He's done bank but needs more hours. There isn't a further story.

I meant that he's been trying to find work for 9 months, rather than 9 months without looking. If they're alarmed by it then they shouldn't be offering him interviews as it's a waste of time

That's a good suggestion thank you

I always see adverts for Functional Assessors for PIP - starts at £40,000 or thereabouts. You need a medical qualification to do it and you get full training.

Will try to suggest other bank work, he just seems to think they don't offer much

Thank you

You're welcome, I hope he finds a role that suits him very soon.

Of course there is something odd about it! If you're relocating, you look for a new job BEFORE you move, not after! And yes, the job market is terrible which is precisely why you don't leave a job until you've got a new one. Anyone would be crazy to leave a job without one to go to in this economic environment unless there is a very good reason. It puts a major question mark over his thinking and planning skills.

As for ageism, I think it does still exist to some extent but there has been a shift in this thinking. In modern day, young people are proving to be so flaky, unreliable and entitled that someone in their 50s who has a demonstrable track record via references is sometimes considered to be more attractive.

Maybe that's his issue? He's been out of work for 9 months, he should be knocking down every single door possible, not 'seeming to think'.

It's not a waste of time at all as you never know what the competition looks like. If other candidates turn out to be terrible then he would get the job. The whole point of a recruitment process is to work out which candidate is the best, it would be a pretty awful process if they guessed!

And I hate to say it but they will absolutely be alarmed by 9 months of not working whether he's been looking or not. I've worked in HR and recruitment for 30 years. He will be seen as a risk without a doubt.

With all his experience im going to guess that hes atleast a band 5 or above which means hes a hell of a lot more expensive to hire than a more junior nurse and that rather than his age is what's causing him issues getting a job

while I think there CAN be decent reasons for having to move urgently and leave a Job without another, do you know his reason and is it one that you think will pass muster in interview? Had to move urgently to be near ailing relative versus, just fancied living near the coast- as examples. Just sounds a bit of an unfortunate series of events move without a job secured and then become injured… maybe the interviewers wonder what really went on?

Nursing used to be you could walk into a job very easily. Not so now, says friend who's done it for decades. Yes, patients are crying out for nurses, literally, but that doesn't mean the government will pay for them. Ageism is a real thing too.

Life is not that black and white.

People relocate for all sort of reasons and don't always have the time and luxury to secure a local job before they move.

You seem to have a very judgemental view of people in general and I think it is completely inappropriate to also suggest that all young people are 'flaky/unreliable/entitled''.

OP I would advise him to look at job opportunities with charities as they often look for healthcare professionals to work on their helpline and support and advice services.

I have worked for health, disabilities and homelessness charities and they often employed nurses in these roles. Same with LGBTQ+ charities.

The Charityjobs website is a good place to start.

That's true although there is no indication from the OP that this was some kind of emergency.

I have worked in HR/People/recruitment for 30 years. I'm offering professional, informed advice and market intelligence, (which I hope is useful!), not judgement. That said, the title of this forum is 'Am I Being Unreasonable?', the whole point of it is to judge whether the OP is 'Unreasonable'. So, even if I was sharing my personal thoughts, rather than modern day thinking, it would be perfectly fitting for this forum. If you don't want to see people judging whether people are being unreasonable, I'd suggest AIBU is not for you!