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9 Barriers to employment

Older Australians can face a range of individual and structural barriers at different stages of employment including recruitment, retention and re-entering the workforce.[64]

Certain groups within the community may experience discrimination on the basis of their age differently from others, for example, people with disability, women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and LGBTI people. The effects of age discrimination can be compounded by multiple forms of discrimination, for example an older lesbian woman potentially faces discrimination on the grounds of gender, sexuality and age. Further, multiple grounds of discrimination can overlap and produce different impacts.

9.1 For older Australians

Some possible barriers older Australians may experience in gaining and keeping employment include:

  • Discriminatory attitudes and behaviours during recruitment, and in the workplace, from employers and others
  • Low levels of awareness of rights at work
  • Lack of access to flexible work arrangements
  • Outdated job search skills
  • Retraining and up-skilling to keep up with industry demands
  • Health issues
  • Factors related to superannuation, retirement savings and incomes
  • Tax incentives and disincentives
  • Issues with workplace environments and conditions
  • Lack of availability of insurance and workers compensation
  • Age pension and superannuation frameworks.

9.2 For employers of older Australians

Businesses and organisations of different sizes, and from a range of sectors and industries, may face particular challenges.

Some possible barriers employers may experience in employing older people include:

  • Low levels of awareness of legal obligations in relation to discrimination against older Australians
  • Limited resources, in particular for small business
  • Difficulties in complying with laws and regulations related to anti-discrimination, employment, work, health and safety, redundancy payments, workers compensation and insurance
  • Age pension and superannuation frameworks.

Discussion question

  1. What are the distinct challenges faced by certain groups of older Australians (e.g. women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds or LGBTI people) in relation to employment discrimination?

 

[64] National Seniors Productive Ageing Centre on behalf of the Consultative Forum on Mature Age Participation Barriers to Mature Age Employment: Final Report of the Consultative Forum on Mature Age Participation (2012). At https://docs.employment.gov.au/documents/barriers-mature-age-employment-final-report-consultative-forum-mature-age-participation (viewed 22 May 2015).