Skip to main content

Hard and soft age discrimination: the dual nature of workplace discrimination

European Journal of Ageing volume 14, pages 49–61 (2017)Cite this article

Abstract

The paper concentrates on the problem of age discrimination in the labour market and the way it can be conceptualised and measured in a multi-disciplinary way. The approach proposed here combines two understandings of age discrimination—a sociological and legal one, what allows for a fuller and expanded understanding of ageism in the workplace. At the heart of the study is a survey carried out in Poland with a sample of 1000 men and women aged 45–65 years. The study takes a deeper and innovative look into the issue of age discrimination in employment. Confirmatory factor analysis with WLSMV estimation and logistic regressions were used to test the hypotheses. The study shows that age discrimination in labour market can take on different forms: hard and soft, where the hard type of age discrimination mirrors the legally prohibited types of behaviours and those which relate to the actual decisions of employers which can impact on the employee’s career development. The soft discrimination corresponds with those occurrences, which are not inscribed in the legal system per se, are occurring predominantly in the interpersonal sphere, but can nevertheless have negative consequences. Soft discrimination was experienced more often (28.6% of respondents) than hard discrimination (15.7%) with higher occurrences among women, persons in precarious job situation or residents of urban areas. The role of education was not confirmed to influence the levels of perceived age discrimination.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

43,34 €

Price includes VAT (Finland)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1

Notes

  1. Prohibition on discrimination was added to the labour code by way of an amendment dated 24 August, 2001 and then altered due to the subsequent code amendments dated 14 November, 2003 and 21 November, 2008. In October 2010 the Act on the Implementation of Certain Provisions of the European Union in the Field of Equal Treatment was passed by the Parliament.

  2. 2241 people were sampled and contacted. 1000 respondents who met the inclusion criteria (age 45-65, active in the labour market) were interviewed. Individuals who were retired or received sickness or disability benefits but declared that they were still active in the labour market were included in the research.

  3. The survey was financed by the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education within a doctoral research grant.

  4. Previous measures of ageism included: the Attitudes Towards Old People Scale (Kogan 1961); the Fraboni Scale of Ageism (Fraboni et al. 1990) measuring the affective component of ageism; the Palmore Ageism Survey (Palmore 2001); a prescriptive ageism scale (North and Fiske 2013) focusing on prescriptive beliefs concerning potential intergenerational conflicts. Most of these tools measure the cognitive and affective dimensions of ageism and are not designed to study workplace discrimination. Yet this is the aim of the Nordic Age Discrimination Scale (Furunes and Mykletun 2010), which incorporates six items which are supposed to measure the perception of age discrimination among employees. However, it does not assess the experiences of age discrimination among older workers, which might still be disparate from the general view of employees about age discrimination in their workplace.

  5. One of the difficulties faced by researchers when trying to measure age discrimination is the multiple meanings and interpretations of the term “discrimination” in the population. The term has been used extensively in various European Union social campaigns in recent years, and certainly raised awareness of the problem of discrimination, but it has nevertheless also contributed to many false conceptions of what discrimination is (Stypińska 2015). Hence, usage of this word in survey questionnaires poses several analytical and later interpretative problems, as respondents might hold very different ideas and convictions of what discrimination means.

  6. PKD is related to the international Statistical Classification of Economic Activities in the European Community (NACE).

  7. We tested: (1) leaving out item 1 (not hired because of age) slightly improves the model (CFI = 0.989, RMSEA = 0.023) as it correlated only weakly with other variables; item 1 was, however, included in the model because it performed relatively well in CFA (with R 2 = 0.51) and was important for theoretical reasons; (2) connecting item 7 (lower value of outcomes due to age) with both factors was suggested by modification indices and slightly improved the model (CFI = 0.985, RMSEA = 0.026), it also had theoretical premises (in this case the legal interpretation depends on other aspects, like repeatability, intense or consequences—it might be, but does not have to be illegal), but due to complexity in interpretation and further analysis it remained as a measure of the second factor only.

References

  • Abrams D, Russel PS, Vauclair P, Swift H (2011) Ageism in Europe. Findings from the European Social Survey. Age UK, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Adamson L (2006) Age discrimination—the new regime. Legal Inf Manag 6(04):302–305. doi:10.1017/S1472669606000946

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Adler G, Hilber D (2009) Industry hiring patterns of older workers. Res Aging 31(1):69–88. doi:10.1177/0164027508324635

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • AHRC (2015) National prevalence survey of age discrimination in the workplace. Australian Human Rights Commission, Sydney. https://www.humanrights.gov.au/sites/default/files/document/publication/AgePrevalenceReport2015.pdf. Accessed 3 Dec 2016

  • Aigner D, Cain G (1977) Statistical theories of discrimination in labor markets. Ind Labor Relat Rev 30(2):175–187. doi:10.2307/2522871

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Amiraux V, Guiraudon V (2010) Discrimination in comparative perspective: policies and practices. Am Behav Sci 53(12):1691–1714. doi:10.1177/0002764210368092

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Angus J, Reeve P (2006) Ageism: a threat to “aging well” in the 21st century. J Appl Gerontol 25(2):137–152. doi:10.1177/0733464805285745

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Arrow K (1998) What has economics to say about racial discrimination? J Econ Perspect 12(2):91–100. doi:10.1257/jep.12.2.91

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bal A, Reiss A, Rudolph C, Baltes B (2011) Examining positive and negative perceptions of older workers: a meta-analysis. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci 66(6):687–698. doi:10.1093/geronb/gbr056

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Becker GS (1957) The economics of discrimination. University of Chicago Press, Chicago

    Google Scholar 

  • Blackburn R (2006) The global pension crisis: from gray capitalism to responsible accumulation. Polit Soc 34(2):135–186. doi:10.1177/0032329206288150

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Breda J, Schoenmaekers D (2006) Age: a dubious criterion in legislation. Ageing Soc 26(04):529–547. doi:10.1017/S0144686X06004946

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Butler R (1975) Why survive? Being old in America. Harper & Row, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Bytheway B (1995) Ageism. Open University Press, Buckingham

    Google Scholar 

  • Bytheway B (2005) Ageism and age categorization. J Soc Issues 61(2):361–374. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4560.2005.00410.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cheung C, Kam P, Ngan R (2010) Age discrimination in the labour market from the perspectives of employers and older workers. Intern Soc Work 1:1–20. doi:10.1177/0020872810372368

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chiu WCK, Chan A, Snape E, Redman T (2001) Age stereotypes and discriminatory attitudes towards older workers: an East–West comparison. Hum Relat 50(6):629–661

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • CIPD (2005) Tackling age discrimination in the workplace. Creating a new age for all. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Cuddy A, Fiske S (2002) Doddering but dear: process, content, and function in stereotyping of older persons. In: Nelson T (ed) Ageism: stereotyping and prejudice against older persons, 2nd edn. MIT Press, Cambridge, pp 3–26

    Google Scholar 

  • Doron I (2006) Elder law: current issues and future frontiers. Eur J Ageing 3(1):60–66. doi:10.1007/s10433-006-0019-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duncan C, Loretto W (2004) Never the right age? Gender and age-based discrimination in employment. Gend Work Organ 11(1):95–115. doi:10.1111/j.1468-0432.2004.00222.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • EC (2009) Developing anti-discrimination law in Europe. The 27 EU Member States compared. European Commission, Brussles

  • Eurobarometer (2015) Discrimination in the EU in 2015. Report. European Commission, Brussles. doi:10.2838/499763

  • Fraboni M, Saltstone R, Hughes S (1990) The Fraboni scale of ageism (FSA): an attempt at a more precise measure of ageism. Can J Aging 9(01):56–66. doi:10.1017/S0714980800016093

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fribergh E, Kjaerum M (2011) Handbook on European non-discrimination law. Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg. doi:10.2811/11978

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furunes T, Mykletun RJ (2010) Age discrimination in the workplace: validation of the Nordic age discrimination scale (NADS). Scand J Psychol 51(1):23–30. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9450.2009.00738.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gaster L, Ashon K, Bass M (2002) Past it at 40? A grassroots view of ageism and discrimination in employment. The Policy Press, Bristol

    Google Scholar 

  • Gonera K (2004) Counteracting discrimination in Poland—information publication (Przeciwdziałanie Dyskryminacji W Polsce—Informator). Publication of Plenipotentiary of Government for Equal Treatment, Warsaw

  • Green TK (2001) Discrimination in workplace dynamics: toward a structural account of disparate treatment theory. Harv Civ Rights Civil Lib Law Rev 38:91–157. doi:10.2139/ssrn.367701

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Handy J, Davy D (2007) Gendered ageism: older women’s experiences of employment agency practices. Asia Pac J Hum Res 45(1):85–99. doi:10.1177/1038411107073606

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harper S, Khan HTA, Saxena A, Leeson G (2006) Attitudes and practices of employers towards ageing workers: evidence from a global survey on the future of retirement. Age Horiz 5:31–41

    Google Scholar 

  • HCS (2014) Human Capital Study, Polish representative research of working age population. https://bkl.parp.gov.pl/dane.html

  • Henkens K (2005) Stereotyping older workers and retirement: the managers’ point of view. Can J Aging 24(4):353–366. doi:10.1353/cja.2006.0011

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Herring J (2011) Age discrimination and the law: forging the way ahead. In: Parry E, Tyson S (eds) Managing age diverse workforce. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke, pp 24–43

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Iversen TL, Larsen L, Solem PE (2009) A conceptual analysis of ageism. Nord Psychol 61(3):4–22. doi:10.1027/1901-2276.61.3.4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson RW, Neumark D (1997) Age discrimination, job separations, and employment status of older workers: evidence from self-reports. J Hum Resour 32(4):779. doi:10.2307/146428

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kaiser CR, Miller CT (2001) Stop complaining! The social costs of making attributions to discrimination. Pers Soc Psychol B 27(2):254–263. doi:10.1177/0146167201272010

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kędziora K, Śmiszek K (2008) Discrimination and mobbing in employment (Dyskryminacja i mobbing w zatrudnieniu). C.H. Beck, Walnut Creek

    Google Scholar 

  • Kite ME, Stockdale GD, Whitley BE, Johnson BT (2005) Attitudes toward younger and older adults: an updated meta-analytic review. J Soc Issues 61(2):241–266. doi:10.1111/j.1540-4560.2005.00404.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kogan N (1961) Attitudes toward old people: the development of a scale and an examination of correlates. J Abnorm Soc Psychol 62:44–54. doi:10.1037/h0048053

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krekula C (2007) The Intersection of age and gender: reworking gender theory and social gerontology. Curr Sociol 55(2):155–171. doi:10.1177/0011392107073299

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lahey JN (2010) International comparison of age discrimination laws. Res Aging 32(6):679–697. doi:10.1177/0164027510379348

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Levy BR, Banaji MR (2004) Implicit ageism. In: Nelson TD (ed) Ageism: stereotyping and prejudice against older persons, 2nd edn. MIT Press, Cambridge, pp 49–75

    Google Scholar 

  • Lincoln AE, Allen MP (2004) Double jeopardy in Hollywood: age and gender in the careers of film actors, 1926–1999. Sociol Forum 19(4):611–631. doi:10.1007/s11206-004-0698-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Loretto W, White P (2006) Employers’ attitudes, practices and policies towards older workers. Hum Res Manag J 16(3):313–330. doi:10.1111/j.1748-8583.2006.00013.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Macnicol J (2005) The age discrimination debate in Britain: from the 1930s to the present. Soc Pol Soc 4(3):295–302. doi:10.1017/S1474746405002447

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Macnicol J (2006) Age discrimination: an historical and contemporary analysis. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Malinen S, Johnston L (2013) Workplace ageism: discovering hidden bias. Exp Aging Res 39(4):445–465. doi:10.1080/0361073X.2013.808111

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McElroy JC, Morrow PC (1983) An attribution theory of sex discrimination. Pers Rev 12(4):11–13. doi:10.1108/eb055485

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGuire SL, Klein DA, Chen SL (2008) Ageism revisited: a study measuring ageism in East Tennessee, USA. Nurs Health Sci 10(1):11–16. doi:10.1111/j.1442-2018.2007.00336.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mcmullin JA, Marshall VW (2001) Ageism, age relations, and garment industry work in Montreal. Gerontologist 41:111–122

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Minichiello V, Browne J, Kendig H (2000) Perceptions and consequences of ageism: views of older people. Ageing Soc 20(3):253–278. doi:10.1017/S0144686X99007710

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MPiPS (2014) Solidarity between generations. Policies towards activation of persons 50 + on the labour market (Program Solidarność pokoleń. Działania dla zwiększenia aktywności zawodowej osób w wieku 50 +). Ministry of Labour and Social Policy in Poland (Ministerstwo Pracy i Polityki Społecznej), Warszawa

  • Neumark D (2009) The age discrimination in employment act and the challenge of population aging. Res Aging 31(1):41–68. doi:10.1177/0164027508324640

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neumark D, Button P (2014) Did age discrimination protections help older workers weather the great recession? J Pol Anal Manag 33(4):566–601. doi:10.1002/pam

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • North MS, Fiske ST (2013) A prescriptive intergenerational-tension ageism scale: succession, identity, and consumption (SIC). Psychol Assess 25(3):706–713. doi:10.1037/a0032367

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Cinneide C (2006) Fumbling towards coherence: the slow evolution of equality and anti-discrimination law in Britain. Soc Sci Res Netw. http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=875408. Accessed 10 June 2014

  • O’Boyle EH, Williams LJ (2011) Decomposing model fit: measurement vs. theory in organizational research using latent variables. J Appl Psychol 96(1):1–12. doi:10.1037/a0020539

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • OECD (2006) Live longer, work longer. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Paris. doi:10.1787/9789264035881-en

  • Oswick C, Rosenthal P (2001) Towards a relevant theory of age discrimination in employment. In: Noon M, Ogbonna E (eds) Equality, diversity and disadvantage in employment. Palgrave, New York, pp 156–171

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Palmore E (1999) Ageism, negative and positive, 2nd edn. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Palmore E (2001) The ageism survey: first findings. Gerontologist 41:572–575. doi:10.1093/geront/41.5.572

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Palmore E, Branch L, Harris DK (eds) (2005) Encyclopedia of ageism. The Haworth Press, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Parry E, Tyson S (eds) (2011) Managing age diverse workforce. Palgrave Macmillan, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Perek-Białas J, Turek K (2012) Organisation-level policy toward older workers in Poland. Int J Soc Welf 21:101–116. doi:10.1111/j.1468-2397.2012.00878.x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perry EL, Finkelstein LM (1999) Toward a broader view of age discrimination in employment-related decisions: a joint consideration of organizational factors and cognitive processes. Hum Resour Manag Rev 9(1):21–49. doi:10.1016/S1053-4822(99),00010-8

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Phelps E (1972) The statistical theory of racism and sexism. Am Econ Rev 62(4):659–661

    Google Scholar 

  • Posthuma R, Campion M (2009) Age stereotypes in the workplace: common stereotypes, moderators, and future research directions. J Manag 35(1):158–188

    Google Scholar 

  • Riach PA, Rich J (2006) An experimental investigation of age discrimination in the French labour market. IZA Discussion Paper (2522). www.papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=956389. Accessed 12 July 2015

  • Rothenberg JZ, Gardner DS (2011) Protecting older workers: the failure of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967. J Sociol Soc Welf 38(1):9–30

    Google Scholar 

  • Rothermund K, Temming F (2010) Age discrimination (Diskriminierung aufgrund des Alters). Antidiskriemienierung Stelle des Bundes, Berlin

    Google Scholar 

  • Ruggiero KM, Taylor DM (1995) Coping with discrimination: how disadvantaged group members perceive the discrimination that confronts them. J Pers Soc Psychol 68:826–838. doi:10.1037/0022-3514.68.5.826

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ruzik-Sierdzinska A, Perek-Bialas J, Turek K (2013) Did transition to market economy and the EU membership have an impact on active ageing policy in Poland? In: Ervik R, Lindén TS (eds) The making of aging policy: theory and practice in Europe. Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, pp 124–147

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Schmitt M, Branscombe NR, Postmes T, Garcia A (2014) The consequences of perceived discrimination for psychological well-being: a meta-analytic review. Psychol Bull 140(4):921–948. doi:10.1037/a0035754

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sontag S (1972) The double standard of aging. Saturday Rev Lit 39:29–38

    Google Scholar 

  • Standing G (2011) The precariat: the new dangerous class. Bloomsbury Academic, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Stypińska J (2015) Older worker in the Polish labour market: 40 + ? 50 + ? Or only “plus”? (Starszy pracownik na rynku pracy w Polsce: 40 + ? 50 + ? Czy tylko “plus”?). Stud Socjol 2(217):143–165

    Google Scholar 

  • Szymańska D, Biegańska J (2014) Characteristics of rural areas in Poland in the context of population ageing (Charakterystyka obszarów wiejskich w Polsce w kontekście starzenia się ludności). Studia Obszarów Wiejskich XXXV:89–108

    Google Scholar 

  • Taylor PE, Walker A (1994) The ageing workforce: employers’ attitudes towards older people. Work Employ Soc 8(4):569–591. doi:10.1177/095001709484005

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor PE, Walker A (1998) Employers and older workers: attitudes and employment practices. Ageing Soc 18(6):641–658. doi:10.1017/S0144686X98007119

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tesch-Roemer C, von Kondratowitz HJ (2006) Comparative ageing research: a flourishing field in need of theoretical cultivation. Eur J Ageing 3(3):155–167. doi:10.1007/s10433-006-0034-0

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turek K (2015) Meaning of age in labour market—model of relationship between employer and employee (Znaczenie wieku na rynku pracy—model relacji pomiędzy pracownikiem i pracodawcą). Stud Socjol 2(217):167–194

    Google Scholar 

  • Turek K, Perek-Białas J (2013) The role of employers opinions about skills and productivity of older workers: example of Poland. Employee Relat 35(6):648–664. doi:10.1108/ER-04-2013-0039

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turek K, Perek-Białas J, Stypińska J (2015) Socio-economic status in ageing Poland: a question of cumulative advantages and disadvantages. In: Komp K, Johansson S (eds) Lifecourse perspective on ageing populations: critical and international approaches. Policy Press, Bristol, pp 85–107

    Google Scholar 

  • Umhauser-Enning A (2013) The EU ban on age-discrimination and older workers: potentials and pitfalls. Int J Comp Labour Law Ind Relat 29(4):391–414

    Google Scholar 

  • Van den Heuvel WJ, van Santvoort MM (2011) Experienced discrimination amongst European old citizens. Eur J Ageing 8(4):291–299. doi:10.1007/s10433-011-0206-4

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walker H, Grant D, Meadows M, Cook I (2007) Women’s experiences and perceptions of age discrimination in employment: implications for research and policy. Soc Policy Soc 6(01):37–48. doi:10.1017/S1474746406003320

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Weiner B (1974) Achievement motivation and attribution theory. General Learning Press, Morristown

    Google Scholar 

  • Wieczorek M, Bogatko K (2013) Anti-discrimination law in praxis of Polish judiciary. Report from monitoring (Prawo Antydyskryminacyjne w Praktyce Polskich Sądów Powszechnych. Raport z Monitoringu). Polskie Towarzystwo Prawa Antydyskryminacyjnego, Warszawa

Download references

Author information

Affiliations

  1. Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany

    Justyna Stypinska

  2. Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland

    Konrad Turek

Authors
  1. Justyna Stypinska
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Konrad Turek
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Justyna Stypinska.

Additional information

Responsible editor: Liat Ayalon and Clemens Tesch-Römer (guest editors) and Howard Litwin.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Stypinska, J., Turek, K. Hard and soft age discrimination: the dual nature of workplace discrimination. Eur J Ageing 14, 49–61 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-016-0407-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10433-016-0407-y

Keywords

  • Age discrimination
  • Labour market
  • Poland
  • Older workers
  • Ageism
  • Employment