Why is it difficult to get a job after 45? Reasons why employers prefer young people. What to do to always remain a sought-after specialist?
The young man received a diploma from a university or college, he is full of strength to work actively, but here's the problem - it turns out that a specialist without experience is not very interesting to the employer.
But another situation is possible: a mature specialist has been laid off or moved to another city, he is looking for a job, and he is refused. It turns out that a specialist over 45 years old, with his considerable experience, may also not be in demand. Why is it difficult to get a job as a specialist after 45 years? In connection with the planned increase in the retirement age in the country, the issue of employment of people from 45 to 65 years old is really becoming a problem.
Officially prohibits and considers it discrimination "the employer's refusal to conclude employment contract However, recruiters turn down older applicants more often than younger applicants.
Why employers are not inclined to hire employees over 40-45 years old?
Employers themselves explain this with several controversial reasons.
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Health. Candidates over 45 are more likely to take sick leave.
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Lack of motivation. "I went to work like hard labor, all her behavior indicated that she would soon go home in the evening, any request - from 98 times, any order - from 50 times ... We said goodbye", says the director of a former employee over 45.
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Family. With age, priorities change: family values become more important than professional results. To be with the family, to help the children, to sit with the grandchildren, and on the weekends to go to the country - an employee who is already at home with all his thoughts becomes less energetic and less creative at work.
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Failure to manage such employees. A younger leader does not always know the approach to an older employee: you can’t raise your voice at him, the standard “carrot and stick” methods that motivate young employees are not applicable to him. Older employees do not fit well into a young team, which can potentially lead to conflicts in the organization.
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Poor technology skills. The rate of introduction of new technologies is constantly growing, and the rate of assimilation of new information in a person decreases with age. Therefore, older people cannot or do not want to join the IT race and universal robotization. And although modern 40-45-year-olds are confident in using a PC, because they absorbed knowledge during the period of development information technologies and the Internet, but they may experience difficulties with the development of new devices, technologies in production, mobile applications, instant messengers that are widely used in work communication.
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Less flexible. Adaptability - required quality a modern specialist, as the labor market and economic sectors are constantly undergoing changes under the influence of legislation, high competition, and developing information technologies. Young professionals are usually active and easily trained, they adapt much more easily to changing working conditions.
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Not ready to be recycled. In the absence of motivation, the priority of family values and an abundance of household chores, the employee will not want to stay to work in the evening and will not sit down to work on weekends. Young employees who have not yet had children and have free time are more likely to find time for unscheduled work.
Each of these statements is a stereotype, which prevents active and qualified specialists over 45 from getting a job on a vacancy. The best way break the stereotypes be head and shoulders above all young applicants. How to do it?
① Keep learning
Training increases your value in the job market. Secondary education, master's degree, advanced training courses, online courses with a diploma or certificate - everything falls into the treasury of personal achievements and increases your value as a potential employee. The constant accumulation of knowledge and skills will not only put you in a winning position relative to young employees, but will allow you to remain active and flexible throughout professional life. You can read more about the concept of lifelong learning in our article "Live and Learn or the Modern European Concept of Lifelong Learning" .
② Expand network of contacts
According to statistics, older job seekers are more likely to find a job through an acquaintance, and not through a job site. The larger the social circle, the more likely employment. Not only business acquaintances, but also just friendships can play a key role. A friend or acquaintance will be able to recommend you or hire you in his company, because he knows your strengths and trusts you.
Pay attention to the development of communication, make new acquaintances and, more importantly, maintain old ones. Messengers will help you with this
Forty year olds are not allowed
After 40 years, life is just beginning, said the main character of the cult Soviet film "Moscow Does Not Believe in Tears." However, unfortunately, this statement does not work in modern Russian conditions when looking for a job.
According to statistics and opinion polls, most employers give preference to young employees, even if their professional experience is clearly inferior to the skills of a more mature candidate.
“The main reason for such a biased attitude is a whole complex of stereotypes that have developed among many employers. It is believed that after the age of 40, the work capacity of an employee falls, it is more difficult for him to adapt in a team and master new knowledge and technologies. The first health problems appear. In addition, older people will not work overtime, and women think more about children and grandchildren than about business,” explains the President of the Foundation social projects Evgeny Shokhin.
By the way, in Western countries, a person's professional flowering falls on 50-55 years. They believe that it is at this age that you can open up as much as possible, since mental functions are under conditions of optimal load and increased motivation.
In Russia, on the contrary, arguments about the age incompatibility of the team and a potential employee prevail: “he won’t fit into a young team,” “it will be difficult for a young boss to manage a person who is twice his age.” Well, one more important point: employers fear (often, without any reason) that an age-old employee will claim a higher salary than one who has “milk on his lips has not dried up”.
“I haven't been able to find a job for the last three years. And at least with the average salary in the city. I send out resumes literally every day, as soon as there are vacancies on any site where my many years of experience could come in handy. But there is still no result. They refuse for the same reason - age. Even though a lot of people don't talk about it. Formally, refusal for this reason is prohibited by law, but in fact, employers ignore the ban, ”the head of the department for information security 52-year-old Alexei Antonov.
Indeed, employers cannot indicate age, gender, nationality, marital status and place of registration in the posted vacancy. Restrictive parameters prohibited by Article 3 Labor Code RF, which proclaims equal opportunities for the implementation labor rights regardless of age. However, this legislative norm, alas, in practice does not alleviate the fate of Russian applicants.
By the way, in European countries at the interview, the interviewer, in principle, has no right to ask the candidate about the age. In our country, employees over the age of 45 are not even given the opportunity to come for an interview, they are screened out by the age limit at the stage of a phone call.
“Only I said: “I’m calling for a job ...”, I was immediately interrupted by a counter question: “How old are you?”. Hearing that I was 49, the voice on the other end of the line replied dryly: “We don’t take over 30 years old. Sorry, no achievements are taken into account. And then there was a long phone beep, which I had to hear more than once, ”Anna Koroleva, a sales manager, shared her experience in finding a job with MK.
Rescue of the drowning - the work of the drowning themselves
Meanwhile, as practice shows, it is practically impossible for employees over the age of 45 who find themselves out of work to prove age discrimination. Most often, the courts refuse plaintiffs or, at best, partially satisfy their complaint.
One of the few exceptions was the sensational story of the Voronezh accountant Yuri Stupko. The man started looking for a job in 2006. At that time, he was 57 years old, and had 30 years of experience behind him. At the same time, he was forced to not work for some time: elderly parents needed care.
Realizing that during this time he could "sag" in professionally, Stupko took refresher courses and was registered with the employment service. From there, the man was sent to a company where his accounting skills were perfect for the vacancy. But after the interview, the applicant was disappointed. The employer refused him a position with a note that Stupko "does not fit the age category."
However, the man was determined to defend his right to workplace and sued the company. Themis took the side of the plaintiff, which was the first case won in the history of Russia about discrimination on the basis of age in employment. True, Stupko could not receive compensation for moral damage. His failed employer, as they say, carried out a "cleansing": the company's funds miraculously flowed into another organization.
However, as lawyers note, the Voronezh accountant was simply lucky. If he did not have a paper in his hands, where the official reason for refusing to work was written in black and white, then his lawsuit would have remained in a pile of unresolved cases in court.
Therefore, applicants who have crossed the line of 45 years should not hope for justice. Where better to take care of your career yourself. As they say, the salvation of the drowning is the work of the drowning themselves.
Psychologist, candidate of medical sciences Marina Monchenko advises age job seekers: first of all, when going for an interview, it is to push into the background the idea that 45 is the sunset of life, it is impossible to get a job, nobody needs you. “Such thoughts are one of the main obstacles to achieving the goal. An extinct look, doom - this is clearly not something that will endear you to an employer. The first thing you should present to the employer is confidence in your abilities and capabilities,” recommends Monchenko.
The psychologist advises during the interview to speak with a potential employer confidently, calmly, clearly, demonstrating the ability to grasp the essence of the issue without falling into excessive detail, clearly delineating your boundaries.
“Even if you have a lot of experience, you should not talk at the interview about how you can reorganize the work of the company, as you did at your previous job. You should also not talk too much and in detail about your experience, professional and everyday, like old people on a bench sharing their memories. Try to concentrate on the essence of the question and answer to the point,” says Monchenko.
“Employers of all ages are attracted to active, energetic, motivated, trainable, flexible workers. So you need to show that you are exactly like that, and even with great experience. Perhaps in your life you have tried a lot, mastered a lot, however, it is better to focus on what is important for this particular vacancy, for this organization. If we are talking about work that requires following instructions, then you do not need to describe in detail your organizational skills and initiative, ”the specialist explains.
A few tricks
In addition to psychological advice, we add a few practical ones.
The most obvious way to look for a job is to send resumes through websites. And this must be done - the wider the net, the more fish. But there are a few tricks.
Most likely, by the age of 45 you have “accumulated” a lot of different skills. Therefore, it is worth making a few resumes under different types vacancies: in one to emphasize, for example, your organizational experience, in the other - to focus on how well you know how to teach something, and so on. Also, personnel officers are advised to accompany the responses cover letters, and an "emotional" message is likely to read better than a "dry" one. You can start it, for example, like this: “Hello! I know all the secrets of the profession, I raised two very independent children, I look great and drive a silver car .... ”- yes, however, whatever you like: you just need to understand that personnel officers - ordinary people and nothing human is alien to them.
If you see one on job sites that you are particularly interested in, then look for it directly on the company's website. A resume can be sent immediately there, and backed up by a call to the personnel officer. If the leader is also a person of mature age, so much the better. Get his contacts, try to offer your services directly, at least get a face-to-face meeting. Explore the profiles of the company's employees in social networks: psychological portraits will be of help.
Carefully study the history of the company and think about what you can offer it to improve its work. This can be very helpful for your interview.
An interesting way to find work in small towns was described by employees of local recruitment agencies. They advised applicants to print simple business cards and distribute them wherever possible - in stores, firms, and so on. Feel free to say that you need a job. If that - about you can remember and call.
Social media is also an important search tool. Write a text that you are looking for a job, and it should not be “dry” either. Contact your friends and acquaintances who are active in social networks, repost your “message” with your comments and recommendations.
In general, the most obvious story is the job search through friends and acquaintances. Be active! Try to figure out which of the "friends of friends" your skills can come in handy, build bridges, call.
And don't give up. If for 100 resumes sent out - unless you are, of course, the coolest programmer - you get a couple of invitations, then this is absolutely normal. If your efforts to search through acquaintances do not give a quick result - do not despair, the fruits may appear later.
Pensioners are eager to fight
The fact that citizens over 45 are having difficulty finding a job is naturally aware of the government. “We must make every effort to eliminate any restrictions on the employment of people who have already reached a certain age, which our people have long demanded,” Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev recently acknowledged.
Moreover, this issue is even more acute in connection with the increase in the retirement age in Russia. Recall that for men the bar will be raised from the current 60 years to 65. And women will go on a well-deserved rest at 63 instead of 55. It is planned to carry out the reform in stages - for the stronger sex it will stretch until 2028, for the weak - until 2034.
Meanwhile, the number of jobs in the economy is limited. And what about those who are already denied by employers? Wait 20 years until retirement? According to the director of the Institute of Actual Economics Nikita Isaev, now the government should take care of creating new jobs so that everyone can find employment. “First, it is necessary to prepare the ground by providing people with jobs and a stable income. In particular, to guarantee jobs for people of pre-retirement age,” says the economist.
Meanwhile, according to the site Rabota.ru, the share of requests from applicants who only have to go on a well-deserved rest this year is not high - about 1%. Experts attribute this behavior to the reluctance of people to change jobs before retirement.
As you know, many Russian men and women, after they cross the current pension bar, continue to work. According to the Ministry of Labor, as of January 1, 2018, there were 12.3 million working pensioners, or 26.4% of their total number of 46.5 million people.
At the same time, many active pensioners do not lose hope to continue their labor activity. According to HeadHunter experts, in 2018, about half a million retired candidates created a resume or updated their application. And this, in turn, suggests that the search for work is now relevant for them.
Most often, retirees place resumes in the field of sales: it accounts for 12% of all created or updated profiles of candidates who have already retired.
Elderly people are also looking for themselves in accounting (8%), in production, in the transport and logistics sector (6% each), as administrative personnel (9%). Moreover, most of them do not claim high earnings. Pensioners most often look for a vacancy with a salary of 38-40 thousand rubles, and pensioners, on average, want to receive around 50-53 thousand rubles.
They also typically look for part-time jobs, two to three days a week, three to four hours a day, and home work.
For example, men give preference to vacancies of watchmen or watchmen, and women - au pairs and nannies. And, according to recruiting agencies, retirees often make excellent workers. In particular, some companies are happy to recruit employees with many years of experience to maintain accounting from home. Also willingly take on the service of age applicants manufacturing companies and catering, outsourcing call centers, and some large employers for surveys and telephone consultations.
In addition, the state is ready to assist those who feel the strength and desire to work after they have retired. For this, they can public service employment to undergo retraining, as well as seek help in finding a job.
Share of employees Russian companies who feel competition for their jobs
Up to 25 years old - 10%
25-30 years old - 15%
31-40 years old - 29%
41-50 years old - 48%
Pension reform is being actively discussed in Russia. As a result, even twenty-year-old young people are wondering who they will work for the "extra" years before a well-deserved rest. The idea has strengthened in the minds of many Russians: it is very difficult to find a job after 45, not to mention those who are over 60. garden partnership. Personnel officers assure: do not worry about stereotypes. The situation on the labor market has already changed.
Irina Zakharova worked as a process engineer in a confectionery shop for almost thirty years. She could not even think that she would be fired from the plant at the age of 52. The enterprise experienced not the most Good times, and the director just decided to cut the older ones. He was sure that young employees would be able to work better. Irina was shocked. She was always considered one of the best specialists and suddenly, quite unexpectedly, she was left on the street. Of course, the head of the personnel department did not tell her the real reason for the dismissal, but everyone knew the secret setting for "rejuvenation of the composition".
For two months, Irina did not know how to live on. Friends consoled: nothing, the son will feed, and there it’s not far from retirement. But a lively and energetic woman could and wanted to work. Irina tried to get a job in her specialty, but over and over again she was refused. Relatives and friends only sighed: what can you do, age. However, the reason turned out to be completely different: employers simply did not like her track record. Irina has worked in one place all her life. Her factory produced classic buttercream cakes from Soviet times. Outdated recipes did not fit in any way with modern ideas about tasty and healthy food. Then Irina went to pastry courses, where she learned a lot about modern cooking and learned how to bake first-class cakes and muffins. Now she works in a coffee shop, where she earns almost twice as much as at the plant.
-The destruction of age stereotypes began two or three years ago, - says Mikhail Bakunin, CEO of the Kogio online business school. - During the crisis, companies are ready to invest less in employee training, and the results are needed now. Therefore, more experienced candidates are chosen.
As noted in recruitment agency UNITY, at the beginning of this year, the demand for specialists with more than five or six years of experience increased by almost 50%, while three years ago, employers were satisfied with up to three years of experience. Due to this, interest in applicants over 40-45 years old has grown. Professionals with extensive experience are in demand in industries that require in-depth expertise and narrow specialization(for example, industry). Today they successfully apply for the positions of top managers, production managers, chief accountants, doctors, scarce technologists and engineers.
Some radically change the scope of activities. Like, for example, Olga Borisova, who recently turned 48. She worked all her life as a design engineer, and two years ago she literally left work for nowhere - she could not work well with the new young boss. As a result, she received another education and now works as an Internet marketer. Moreover, if earlier Olga earned 60 thousand rubles a month, now it is 100.
There are many such students at the HackerU IT school. A lot of people over forty come to career guidance programs. According to the CEO of the school, Olesya Gorkovaya, four of them are currently studying in the Internet marketing course, and four more in the cybersecurity course. Especially for students over 40-50 years old, they even developed a special career map - a mindmap of opportunities and ways to change their lives for the better.
-Stereotypes are crumbling, because the main stereotype has been destroyed, that one career (one job, one company) is for life, - notes Anna Chukseeva, career consultant, editor-in-chief of Rabota.ru. - This is a global trend. For example, in the United States, on average, a person changes up to 20 jobs, while in our country this figure is still 5–6. Now, in fact, there are many opportunities: to retrain, start working remotely, start your own blog and make money on it. Maybe this is so far single, but the trend is going in this direction. There was such a thing as a "career of the second half of life": coaching, mentoring, consulting, teaching. Of course, this is all true for intellectual professions.
This is how Sergey Deryabin, who recently turned 50, built his career. Now he is the General Director of Humanitarian Management Technologies LLC, a senior partner and founder of the Sailing Art yacht company. His business is management consulting. Prior to that, he worked for more than twenty years in a large corporate business- was the vice-president of the Protek group of companies, HR director of Rosbank, deputy general Director of TMK. For the 50th anniversary, Sergei prepared for a long time and, in order not to become a "retired manager", took up own business. According to him, this is one of the best options career development for top managers.
- Hired workers, even experienced managers, really experience difficulties in finding employment in commercial companies after 50–55 years, - Sergey Deryabin admits. - Ceteris paribus, preference will, as a rule, be given to the younger. Only specialists of rare professions, high-class experts and successful managers who implement complex projects and confirm their effectiveness remain in demand. The core competency that needs to be developed today is "learn and learn".
According to Anna Chukseeva, the situation is even simpler for mass market workers. Specialists aged 40+ are willingly hired in retail for the positions of cashiers, sales assistants, and hall workers. Moreover, in a number of brands specially mature consultants are recruited, who inspire more confidence in the audience. In recent years, experience has often been valued more than youth.
For example, Damir Takeev, an HR business partner at Domino's Pizza, notes that employees over forty are willing to deliver pizza. They also work in other ordinary positions in restaurants. More qualified specialists work in the office already in leadership positions. According to Damira, it will be even easier for an aged person to get a job as a manager in their company than for a young one, simply because, first of all, when applying for a job, they look at experience, while a mature specialist will have more of it.
However, in Lately completely new opportunities opened up for experienced workers. Many of them have gone freelancing. So, Olga, at the age of 56, registered on the online service of household and business services YouDo.com. Olga was engaged in translation and taught Italian. Because of financial problems many students were forced to stop classes, and she was left without a job. I decided to earn extra money as a seamstress, and then turn my hobby into a job. She remembered that 40 years ago she learned to sew theatrical costumes and models for exhibitions. At first, Olga took only simple tasks: shorten the curtains, fix the zipper on the skirt. Now she sews Empire style ball gowns and kimono from real Japanese silk.
Nikolay is 65 years old, and he is a teacher by education. Before moving to Moscow, he lived and worked in Sochi, studied physical therapy and massage. After moving, I managed to try myself in various fields: worked as a plumber, correspondent, supplier, taxi driver. After his retirement, he decided to take up translation, because he speaks English well. In addition to freelance translations, she writes articles and essays, prepares transcripts of various interviews, and sometimes walks her dogs. By the way, he started writing before he retired. In 2002 he wrote a crime thriller, and now he is working on a historical story. Now he wants to upload a written book to Litres in order to receive a percentage of downloads.
“If we talk about people of retirement age, now we have about 1,640 men and 2,247 women registered,” says Anastasia Dementyeva, communications specialist for YouDo.com. - This is twice as much as last year.
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