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Suggested age for applicants? Should I waste my time applying for a role that is targeted to students?
Elaine Varelas provides guidance on the importance of inclusive and flexible job postings.
Q. I’m an early retiree and recently saw a job posting for a nearby café that I frequent that I’d be perfect for! I’m retired, social, and plan to stay active. I’m lucky enough not to need to work for financial reasons and would love a part-time job. The issue? The job posting specifies that it is looking for a “smart, reliable, and upbeat college or grad student.” It’s disappointing when I see something like this in a job posting and know they’ll be surprised and most likely disappointed in me as a candidate.
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A. As the unemployment rate remains high and great employees are hard to find, it’s unfortunate that some recruiters and hiring managers lack creativity in their recruiting efforts. When you see a job description saying, “perfect for a college student or graduate student”, what makes it perfect for them is a reduced or flexible scheduled and the understanding that this isn’t a career path role. Why wouldn’t this be perfect for someone who has retired and would like to work part-time and has good interpersonal skills? When employers have predetermined notions of the ideal candidate for a position that they are advertising for, they will limit their opportunities for success and are showcasing bias that borders on discrimination.
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So, get creative and describe the life circumstances of the person who you’d like to apply for that job. Someone who wants a flexible schedule and isn’t planning to support a family on what they make at this job. Someone who has other things in their life that would compete with a full-time job. Someone who enjoys working with all kinds of people. The person who would be able to fill this job role successfully shouldn’t have an age requirement.
Job advertisements often contain implicit or explicit age/gender discrimination. We’ve seen this in ads for “cleaning women” in quotes, where men are perceived as the managers, but the women are doing the work. Anyone looking for anyone to work needs to eliminate any biases from their job postings and the criteria they are looking for. And while hiring managers might not see this as an example of age discrimination, it in fact is. A good attorney might have fun here!
Your resume is not going to be the way to get you the job. Take the opportunity to walk in to meet the manager or owner of the café to express your interest. Let them know the reasons why you would be a great candidate for the role. You might consider saying, “I’ve always enjoyed providing great customer service, and I’m a regular at this café, so I understand what makes the atmosphere so warm and welcoming.”
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And alert them without making it obvious that they are engaging in age discrimination. Employers should focus on the qualities and circumstances that make someone a good fit for the job. Tell me when you get the job. I’ll join you for coffee.
Be civil. Be kind.
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