Pensions Debate Must Bring Ageism to Top of Boardroom Agendas

- Ageist stereotypes must be tackled for Turner’s retirement recommendations

- Firms need to initiate wider cultural change to combat stereotypes

Widespread age discrimination among UK workers will make the recommendations from yesterday’s Turner Report difficult for employers to implement. An in-depth study of employees working in two financial institutions has revealed widespread existence of ageist stereotypes among co-workers who believed that, unlike sex, race or disability discrimination, age was not an issue.

The research, by the Ludic Group with the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), commissioned and designed by employment law experts Croner, revealed that in order to create a workplace in which three generations can productively work together, as outlined in Lord Turner’s recommendations, employers need to address a grass-roots culture change.

Participants of the Croner study, all employees aged in their 30s to 50s, were unaware of age as a factor in workplace diversity. The research identified a widespread acceptance of ageism as just the way things are and more socially acceptable than other prejudices, such as race and religion.

Croner is campaigning for employers to bring the issue to the boardroom table now, and to recognise the significant part the nation’s businesses have to play in changing culture towards older workers.

When we leave for work each morning we take our prejudices with us. If we have a situation where people continue in employment until they are 67 or more, employers will need to collectively drive a change in attitudes towards older workers. People at all levels will need to move on from the popular stereotypes of older workers being too slow and set in their ways, and start seeing ageism as another form of discrimination, says Richard Smith, Employment Services Director, at Croner.

Unless businesses take action now to address ageist stereotypes, it leaves Lord Turner’s recommendations an ’ideal world’ scenario.

The research, chaired by Professor Patrick Humphreys, head of the Institute of Social Psychology at LSE, analysed employees’ personal views and experiences on age using a ’real workplace’ situation to provide a glimpse into true organisational life. The companies involved claimed to be ’age diverse’ and working towards ’best practice’ in terms of diversity.

Speaking on behalf of the research team Patrick Humphreys says: This was an exciting study in which we sought to prove the idea that legislation itself could not solve the problem of age related discrimination. Accounts from the participants in these organisations showed that addressing age related stereotypes was clearly an issue and led us to recommend companies take age positive steps and identify practical methods to challenge assumptions and attitudes towards age.