Ageism Still a ‘Major’ Problem in Tech

It’s just flat out money. A position I applied for asked for a “3-5 year experienced systems programmer” on a particular platform, I called and told them I had over 20 years experience on it. The person I spoke to LITERALLY SAID, “We can only afford a 3 year experience guy”. I told them I could easily make up the different just in system and performance improvements that I would know more about than a 3 year guy. I am afraid that this is far more than just a money issue. Even if more experienced workers agree to take the same rate as a jr. worker, they are still turned down or overlooked. The question is why? I find it truly ironic that companies will happily hire three H1 workers who together can sometimes do the work of one seasoned worker. I have literally gone into companies and successfully done the work of 3-4 people previously assigned the same tasks and goals – and I was coasting. Ultimately, it costs the company in productivity, far more than wages, when hiring less experienced workers. But somehow, companies still buy into the notion that cheap rates equal greater profits. I think one issue is we are still stigmatized with the idea that only “young people” get tech. This is nonsense, but the image prevails. Millennials in tech are getting the lion’s share of promotions, scooping up 70% of them, according to new data from software company Visier. Based on an aggregated database analysis of 300,000 employees from 43 companies (a subset of their customers), newly identified data shows that not only are technology companies hiring Millennials at a faster rate (they account for more than 43% of all jobs in tech), but those same Millennials are also receiving the lion’s share of promotional opportunities. As for the rest of the promotions, 25% went to Gen X workers, and 4.3% to Baby Boomers. Also, it was found that the frequency of promotions for tech workers rapidly decline after age 36. Follow Ladders on Flipboard! Follow Ladders’ magazines on Flipboard covering Happiness, Productivity, Job Satisfaction, Neuroscience, and more! When asked if the numbers Visier uncovered looked unusual, Dave Weisbeck, chief strategy officer, said they did. “What the data does show is that there is a very huge disproportion of young hires [in tech], by comparison to all other industries,” he said. While it was difficult to make accusations of ageism through data alone, Weisbeck said, “Bias is bias. So if you have bias, you should look to get rid of it.” What he was more concerned about was the situation of older workers in tech – an industry where 40 is considered an “older worker.” “I do worry about the bias against older workers, who are now in the twilight of their careers, and find themselves suddenly unemployable,” he said. Ageism is an integral problem in the industry. In 2007, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said about his hiring practices, “Young people are just smarter.” A recent survey showed that age discrimination for tech founders starts at age 36. Between 2