Scared of December New Grads? Make Sure That You’re Not Discriminating on Age
This is the time of year when a whole group of new college grads will begin looking for work. With an influx of new graduates in the job market, it is important that employers are aware of ways that they can avoid discriminating based on age. Age discrimination in the workplace is something that you want to shy away from at all costs. People are staying in the workforce longer, and this can be difficult to deal with. The type of industry that your business is in will have a major influence on the amount of ageism that exists.
What is Ageism?
In order to make sure that you are not discriminating based on age, it is important that you are aware of what ageism really means. Ageism is essentially age discrimination and can be seen in the workplace in a number of different ways. If the decision to hire or not hire an employee is based on age, this is an example of ageism in the workplace. Age is not something that should be relevant in the workplace. There are a number of reasons why a business might benefit from making age a factor, but this is not something that should play a role in the hiring process.
Avoid Ageism
It is important that all businesses are aware of the ways in which they can avoid ageism in the workplace. This means that businesses need to be aware of all local and national ageism laws that are in place. Being knowledgeable is always the first step. It is important that you are not hiring people who you shouldn’t be. This might not seem plausible, but it is much more common than you might realize. There is a minimum age requirement and you need to be sure that you are always following this law. It is important that you always ask for proof of age before your hire potential employees.
Advertising
It is also important to be aware of the role that advertising has in the age of potential employees that come applying for jobs. The way in which you choose to advertise your business can play a big role in the age of applicants that you see. This means that the way you advertise jobs could make it look like your business has an age discrimination issue, when it really simply gets one type of applicant.
