Indeed Says 45+ is Late Career to Decline

Written By Barbara Brooks

A funny thing happened two weeks ago. Yes, indeed. Literally, Indeed, the world's largest career seeker and recruiter platform, leaned into the age-old stereotype that humans over a certain age of, oh, say, FIFTY-FIVE are too old to work. Or rather, they're in "decline."

A published career guide report had a cool graphic that showed if you're between 45 and 55, you're in your "late career" stage, and those of us 55-65 are in our "decline" era. This led to an absolute global outrage by pro-age advocates like myself.

So, what were they thinking?

By the time Indeed executives removed the image, the damage was done. The misguided branding of humans over 40 had landed across millions upon millions of hiring managers, recruiters, and decision-maker devices, to the disdain of forty-something career seekers already finding it difficult to land jobs, let alone interviews.

So, what were they thinking in the first place? After all, they are a platform built to help humans secure the jobs of their dreams. They are in the trenches day in and day out. Don't they know and understand the struggle, the age bias we experience, and the whispers from recruiting companies they have relationships with? And what's the age breakout of Indeed behind closed doors? Well, at its helm are GenX'ers.

August 2024 Indeed image now unpublished.

How do they not know?

Forbes, Staffing Industry Analysts, and other national and global media agencies took up arms (thank you!) against the idea that we were expiring. They said it best in an article: "These so-called 'decline' individuals are not winding down; many are applying decades of hard-earned knowledge to solve complex problems, mentor colleagues, and steer their organizations through turbulent times. The notion that these years represent a decline is a complete misrepresentation of reality." I mean, can I get an Amen?

How does Indeed not know…

  • 42% of hiring managers admit they have age bias when making decisions to move a candidate forward.

  • Companies lost $850 billion in 2018 in the U.S. economy by not hiring 50-plus people

  • The number of 50-plus people in the U.S. will continue to grow over the next decade to 19 million over the growth of 6 million for the 18-49 population and the

  • Knowledge fusion brought on by generational diversity in the workplace is so powerful that it increases the bottom line.

Indeed, people have to know that big things happen in the second act.

Ask anyone entering or already over 50, and they will tell you we feel as if we are just getting started. We've lived our lives and are ready to live even more of it in the second half, and you know what? WE WANT THE DAMN JOB too. If we apply for the job, we want to work for you. Hire us.

Our careers are not in "decline," but instead, we are on the incline of our lives, leaning in.

Put us in the game, coach.

Barbara Brooks | Age Diversity Speaker, 50+ Content Creator, and Founder of SecondAct|Women

Find me on socials

youtube.com/@BarbaraBrooks/

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instagram.com/heybarbarabrooks

https://spoti.fi/45xyMY6

Sources:

  • https://nypost.com/2024/04/05/lifestyle/hiring-managers-biased-against-gen-z-over-40s-survey/

  • AAR Phttps://press.aarp.org/2020-1-30-Age-Bias-Costs-800-Billion

  • https://www.aarp.org/research/topics/economics/info-2019/longevity-economy-outlook.html

  • https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/understanding-generational-diversity-why-its-future-mary-cooney-phd

Barbara Brooks
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Ageism. The Unconscious Bias