Employers complain of staff shortages, but older people go unnoticed: lack of seniority for retirement

Snow White, for whom she has worked as a communications consultant for several decades, for several decades. When I changed jobs, I had to deal with a strange age-related question.

“I was not offended, but during the job interview, the manager asked if it would feel good if it was led by a younger colleague. I was surprised by that problem: for the first time I directly encountered it with my age, but it did not cause me any problems hire me and continue to work successfully and move up the career ladder in that field, ”says Snieguolė Matonienė.

Although the women’s story is successful, other people of similar age, according to the unions, are sadder. People 50 and older are outraged to hear from employers that employees are lazy to work.

“They tell their stories with tears in their eyes that they really want to work very much, because retirement is 10 years away, and the work experience is not yet complete. They would work in any position, but they simply face the barrier that when they apply, it is enough for the employer to ask what the age is and the interview ends, ”says Inga Ruginienė, president of the Trade Union Confederation.

Employers say they value older workers, but some lack the skills needed in a highly volatile job market.

“Unfortunately, I have to say that older people in this place are falling behind in life. A few days ago, we spoke to the Prime Minister that our recycling system was very archaic. It is not keeping up with technological changes and the new demands of the labor market ”, points out Danas Arlauskas, president of the Business Confederation.

Snow White has a different opinion about older workers.

“They may say, ‘I don’t know something,’ which young people don’t say probably because of experience and a desire to perform better, they won’t say they don’t pay for something. Therefore, the impression is that these young people supposedly have more knowledge and skills, ”says the woman.

The Employment Service estimates that there are a total of 90,000. Unemployed aged 50 and over. Problems with employment arise because their professions are no longer suitable for the modern job market, they are afraid of retraining. But more and more are finding jobs. Last year – up to 4 thousand. per month, and this year, already more than 5 thousand.

“It is no longer possible to say that employers discriminate on the basis of age, because there is a real need for older workers due to the lack of manpower. However, the biggest problem here is that older people are less motivated and a large number of people do not adapt to the changing labor market ”, comments Giedrė Vitė, representative of the Employment Service.

The Ombudsman’s Office for Equal Opportunities this year has already received 68 complaints of age discrimination in the labor market, compared to 123 last year.

“For various reasons. Some people say that the ads indicate a certain age or that when you call and work, you say that your age is too high, because we are looking for drivers who are under 50 years old,” says the Ombudsman for Equality of Birutė Sabatauskaitė Opportunities.

Here the retailers proclaim that age doesn’t matter to them.