If your employer lets you go. overlooks you for a promotion or for tasks with more responsibility, you might suspect they did so because of your age.
If you ask them outright, they’ll probably deny it and give you another reason. So how can you tell if they are telling the truth or if the real reason for their decision was that they consider you too old? Here are some signs that could help:
Others of your age suffer similar fates
Maybe all the recent promotions have been of people in their 30s, despite plenty of people in their 40s and 50s being better qualified.
You hear age mentioned more frequently
It might not be direct mentions, such as saying you are 48. Rather, you may hear comments that reference age. For example, about putting your feet up, almost being half a century old or just the phrase “at your age.”
Your review deteriorates even though your performance has not
Most employers are aware of age discrimination laws. So they may try to cover their motives by inventing other reasons for their actions. For example, building up a set of poor performance reviews for you, so that they can use that as a reason to let you go.
Age discrimination has been illegal for a long time, but it still happens. Learning more about how to protect your rights could help protect you and your job. By taking a stance you could also help to protect future workers as they too get older.