The Times of London, 13 April 2005, reported on a survey by the Hay Group (remuneration specialists) on age discrimination against younger workers (specifically those age 18-24). You can read it here.
The main reasons for young people (Generation Xers) being held back were:
the glut of people in the 30s and 40s filling up slots ahead of them, leaving no space for promoti0ns. We have been predicting this for some time, and so now we see it happening. The Silent and Boomer generations are not going to retire as they used to, and this is going to cause a log jam in most personnel systems.
that young people (Gen Xers) are often perceived as flighty, irresponsible and not worth promoting. The article gives some good advice – basically, get off your backside, get mentored, differentiate yourself from the crowd, make it happen – don’t just whine that it doesn’t!
Finally, they specfically counsel people to network with others from rival companies, because moving may be the only way to get ahead. If you employ these bright young things, what can you do to ensure they don’t need to think of moving?
