Jobseekers hide experience to land jobs

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Source: Fortune.com

Summary

Millennials are starting to feel the pressure of the white-collar job recession. Jobseekers in their 30s and 40s are slimming down their resumes to reflect only the past 10 years of experience and limiting their public work history on LinkedIn and professional websites. Online resume advice gurus are encouraging middle-aged jobseekers to hide clues that could give away their age. About 90% of workers over 40 say they’ve experienced ageism, according to a 2024 survey by Resume Now. Research shows that AI can exacerbate discrimination on the basis of race and gender in the hiring process.

Our Reading

The announcement sounds familiar.

Jobseekers are trying to fit into the new landscape by hiding their age and experience. They’re limiting their public work history and focusing on the past 10 years of their career. But this strategy is not foolproof, as hiring managers are still looking for signs of age and experience.

Companies are using AI to screen candidates, which can exacerbate ageism. Even the AARP recommends “age-proofing” your resume, suggesting focusing on the past 10 years of your career and getting rid of signs that inadvertently reveal one’s age.

Author Suzy Welch advises older jobseekers to prove they can match younger candidates’ stamina and cultural fluency while showing off their industry know-how. She encourages people of all ages to form “irregular relationships” and get comfortable speaking with younger and older people who could be potential coworkers.

“Your currency is your currency,” she said, adding that keeping up with market, industry, and geopolitical trends is a must for older candidates. “You have to prove that your currency is forward thinking. It’s out ahead. And that’s true of everybody, but the onus is much higher on the oldsters.”

Original Observation: The pressure to conform to a younger, more agile workforce is forcing jobseekers to adapt and hide their age and experience.

Author: Evan Null