Dear ‘Older Person’ from Florida, thank you so much for making it quite clear that it is all our own fault for those of us ‘older’ people looking for employment.
You say, “Stop complaining, change your focus!” Please be so kind as to explain how you expect people who have done one trade/ profession for over 40 years to change their focus?
You state you don’t want to be derogatory? Yet that is exactly what you are! You, I gather from your stance, are either employed or well-off retired, and have not been in the position to be unemployed for quite a while, wondering where the next meal will come from, battling to pay bills!
You accuse us of having ‘attitude’ and tell us to stop complaining? Why? We as human beings and living in a so-called democracy, have every right to voice our opinions, which seems to annoy you.
I speak for myself and a few of the other ‘older’ people I know – we are all highly qualified people, all the ones I know are both quite able and willing to perform the tasks required by our profession.
We are not asking or expecting special treatment due to our age and experience, and yes, it is the prospective employer’s right to choose who they wish. It would however be common decency to respond to applications that are unsuccessful, and please do not tell me how arduous this would be. A simple mass email would do!
I can’t speak for others, but I know that in my case, I applied for hundreds of positions, all of which I was more than qualified to do, something that most of the younger generation would not be able to do, not for want of doing the work, merely from the point of having neither the skills nor the experience to do the job. And as all us ‘older’ people have been let go, there is no one left to teach the few who actually want to learn a trade!
