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Look “Over the Hill” for Qualified Workers
By Bill Catlette and Richard Hadden
So they tell us there's a labor shortage in some fields. While the economy has left us with a glut of workers in some regions and industries, others can’t find top talent, and it’s crippling productivity. Some have bought the notion that all the good workers in their industry have jobs, and the only ones left are people you wouldn't hire on a bet.
Don't believe it. It doesn't have to be.
Undisputedly the labor market is tight in some areas.
But try telling that to Mark Cushman, a talented but unemployed computer programmer with 18 years' solid experience. He hasn't worked in more than a year. Nobody would dare come out and tell him this, but the truth is, Mark is too old. Over the hill. Past it.
Before you picture Mark's face on one of Willard Scott's jelly jars on the Today Show, you should know that Mark has been put out to pasture at the ripe old age of 42.
Forty-two. Donnie Osmond won’t see 42 again!
The high tech field provides but one example of a curious problem that exists in almost every growing industry, discipline, and profession. The workers are out there. Most employers are just using the wrong filter. Whether it's in high tech, healthcare, sales, manufacturing, or services, many employers insist on hiring only ``young bucks" and have added to a problem that needn't be as bad as it appears.
So testified Dr. Norman Matloff, a professor at the University of California at Davis, before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee in April of 1998. Having updated his research and comments early in 2000, he believes the ``labor shortage" is largely a figment of corporate America's imagination, and a product of its obsession with youth.
According to Dr. Matloff, most employers cast off as many as 98% of their applicants, simply because they don't yet possess the specific skills or experience the employers are looking for. Aptitude, a proven track record, and potential to learn the skills don't make the cut.
Remember that to the job market, an “older worker" doesn't just mean the AARP crowd. If you can remember the King assassination, you're in the group. If you ever saw JFK on live TV, you're ancient.
If employers are disregarding all but those fresh out of school, it's no wonder they think there's a huge problem. In fact, if they continue, the demographics make the problem inevitably insurmountable.
Some possible reasons for some managers' curious aversion to hiring seasoned pro's:
- young managers don't want to manage employees older than they are.
- the widespread misconception that people over 40 can't learn anything new, and
- the underlying fear that older workers will care more about family and be less willing to put in long hours.
- older workers cost too much, especially compared to cheap immigrant labor.
Since none of these reasons (except the last) has any basis in fact, it's foolhardy to insist on the “fresh outs" simply because they come from the factory already equipped with the technical features you need. It's great if you can get them, but if you can't, it's insane to let jobs remain open and lose productivity and profits while eager, conscientious, and trainable resources stand outside your door. In the field of computer programming, for example, a competent veteran programmer can become productive in a new programming language in a couple of weeks on the job.
A capable engineer in her 40's, who has kept up with changes in industry and her profession can perform as well, and in many important ways, better than her twentysomething colleague. An accomplished sales rep, with thousands of closed sales under his belt, and now a spare tire lopping over it, is probably more qualified, though not as attractive as the athletic young rep with a full head of hair.
Old timers bring lots of value to a job. For one thing, they know more. A lot more.Comedian Richard Pryor had a point when he observed, ``You don't get to be old bein' no fool!" Age brings wisdom and experience. The move toward younger workers is already causing a ``brain drain". Days Inns president John Snodgrass says, "Corporate America is walking past an unbelievable resource of talent - reliable, trained, educated".
A Conference Board survey of executives in 363 companies reveals the following perceptions: older workers are more conscientious, more loyal, and maintain higher morale on the job. Another study shows that workers over 39 are 40% less likely to hurt themselves at work. While they have the same or greater productivity as their younger co-workers, they have much lower rates of turnover and absenteeism, and take fewer sick days, for themselves, or to be with sick children.
If you, like so many employers, are singing the labor crunch blues, cheer up! Help has arrived, in the form of talented, experienced, hardworking employees, capable of learning whatever you cast in their direction. They may be in their 30's, 40's, or even 50's, but rest assured the gray hair was well earned. There are plenty of them, and more to come.
It's been said that Contented Cows Give Better Milk. Just be careful about putting good people out to pasture before their time.
Please print the following attribution for this article: Bill Catlette and Richard Hadden, co-authors of Contented Cows Give Better Milk, help clients clobber the competition by having a focused, fired up, and capably led workforce. They deliver powerful conference keynotes and leadership training. They can be reached at 800-940-7006 (+1-904-720-0870 from outside North America) or www.ContentedCows.com.