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Celebrating Older Persons Globally
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In 1991, the United States first celebrated World Senior Citizen’s Day on August 21st to spotlight issues that affect older persons, such as health and elder abuse.
In Japan, where honoring the elderly is considered a strong value, the third Monday of September is named Respect for the Aged Day. On this day, the Japanese media features older persons and recognizes the oldest individuals in the country.
South Africa typically sets aside a week in late September for Older Persons Week, during which the country pays tribute to older persons and raises awareness on issues that affect them.
The Philippines commemorates Elderly Filipino Week, October 1-7, which celebrates the country’s seniors and emphasizes their contributions.
On a larger and more international scale, October 1st marks the International Day of Older Persons. This day was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1990 to highlight and challenge negative stereotypes about aging as well as empower older persons.
All over the world, countries shine a light on issues that affect older individuals as well as their valuable contributions to the world we live in. In a time where catchphrases like “OK Boomer” abound, it is important to recognize older persons can meaningfully contribute to a fast-moving society with their skills, experiences, and perspectives. Some cultures believe that wisdom comes from living a long life and their elders play key roles in their communities.
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Ageism, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), is divided into several layers: “how we think (stereotypes), how we feel (prejudices), and how we act toward others or even ourselves (discrimination) because of age.” The WHO says that the cumulative effect of these behaviors can shorten people’s lives by up to seven and a half years.
Ageism can show up in different ways. Examples include generalizing older people as stubborn or stuck in their ways, or—because young persons can also be subject to ageism—viewing younger people as irresponsible or unskilled. Bullying and harassment, particularly against older individuals, can occur. While legislation protects against age discrimination in some countries, ageism can emerge in people management practices.
Photo by cottonbro studio
Overall, ageism can have a negative impact on the well-being of individuals, organizations, and society. According to WHO, “children as young as four years old [can] become aware of their culture’s age stereotypes.” These stereotypes are then internalized, which may then affect their feelings and actions towards people of different ages as well as toward themselves. In addition, according to the World Economic Forum, COVID-19 has “worsened ageism.” The COVID-19 pandemic rendered older persons, particularly those with co-morbidities, especially vulnerable to the virus. Increased social isolation, distancing, and restrictions on movement have made it difficult for some older persons to live healthy lifestyles.
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Good Practices and Resources | |
A good place to start when combatting ageism in the workplace is to gather information. Data collection is key to identifying ageism: employee surveys, one-on-one informal conversations with employees, and interviews. Reviewing age patterns in people management data can also be a source of information.
Being aware of language is important too. A study titled The Language of Ageism: Why We Need to Use Words Carefully finds that language-based age discrimination contains themes of “assumptions and judgments, older people as different, uncharacteristic characteristics, old as negative, young as positive, infantilization, internalized ageism, and internalized microaggression.” The study also recognizes that ageism is “rooted in both explicit actions and implicit attitudes,” and that there is a need to examine how this shows up in the words that we use. The Center for Ageing Better, in its goal to reduce bias by being more intentional about inclusive language, provides a resource titled Guidelines for Age Inclusive Communications.
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As part of a Global Campaign to Combat Ageism, the WHO produced several resources including a quick guide to avoid ageism in communication.
Resources are also offered by Ageism, Inc., a non-profit that aims to combat ageism in society and within the workplace.
Organizations can provide skills development and also explore how technology can be used to support older workers. Andrew Scott, a Professor of Economics at London Business School writes, “as machine become smarter at being machines, humans can focus on their human strengths.” His research indicates older workers have a comparative advantage in many new technologies.
Supportive resources are needed as workers deal with shifting issues related to sandwich generations. A sandwich generation is composed of individuals uniquely “sandwiched” between aging parents and children, often taking on the responsibility to care for both at the same time. This juggle is no small feat, and individuals caught in the position of having to care for both aging and young loved ones find themselves drained of finances, health, time, and other resources. In the time of COVID-19, the stress on the sandwich generation exacerbated considerably. It is important to identify resources available to help ease loads on employees who fall within this group.
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A Collaborative and Multigenerational Environment
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We live in a time when it is possible for individuals from five generations – the Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, Generation X, Millennials, and Generation Z – to share an office every day. The temptation to lump individuals/generations into stereotypes exists – for instance, the phrase “OK Boomer” went viral in 2019 as a meme used to deride traits and attitudes associated with Baby Boomers. Gen X individuals are sometimes called the “middle child generation,” as they are a smaller demographic group lodged between the well-known Baby Boomers and Millennials. The term snowflake generation has been used in reference to Millennials and a new social media influencer career has emerged for Gen Z.
But can they co-exist across generational divides and the temptation of ageistic behavior?
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Ageism.org highlights the importance of creating a collaborative environment, one where older persons are not threatened by job displacement from younger employees, and where young people are invited to give their perspectives and are taken seriously. Businesses and governments can create policies and legislation to support proactive practices and environments where the sharing of ideas, experiences, and opinions can enrich exchanges between generations. | |
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Ageism
The stereotypes (how we think), prejudice (how we feel) and discrimination (how we act) towards others or ourselves based on age.
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Podcast/Video:
Navigating Ageism at Work: The Forgotten DEI Factor
This conversation between Peter Cappelli, a Professor of Management at Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and Nicole D. Smith, Editorial Audience Director for the Harvard Business Review, explores actionable tips on how to recognize and respond to subtle and overt ageism in the workplace, the importance of age diversity, and creating a culture of inclusion and respect.
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The Centre for Global Inclusion
offers its sincere thanks to our generous sponsors.
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To review past newsletters from The Centre for Global Inclusion, click here.
Images for this August E-News were sourced from Pexels and edited in Canva.
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The Centre for Global Inclusion is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and home of the free Global Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Benchmarks: Standards for Organizations Around the World (GDEIB). Its mission is to serve as a resource for research and education for organizations and individuals in their quest to improve diversity, equity, and inclusion practices around the world. To learn more, please visit www.centreforglobalinclusion.org. | | | | |
