‘Not worth the investment’: Why bosses push older workers to retire—and how to fight back

He’s seen this play out in various ways. For instance, say an employee’s been working at a bank for 20 years, during which they’ve established strong relationships in the specific territory they’ve been serving. “Because [the employer] can’t really find any performance issues, but they’re concerned about the cost” of that long-time employee’s salary, Nasir says, “they will move that person out into another territory where they don’t know anybody.” Then, their performance will suffer—giving the employer an excuse to let them go. This type of ageist discrimination is technically illegal, but that hasn’t stopped employers. According to survey results AARP published in January, nearly a quarter of respondents ages 50 and older felt like they were being “pushed out of their jobs,” while 60% reported experiencing “subtle forms” of ageism, such as assumptions that they aren’t knowledgeable about technology or getting passed over for new training opportunities. Making matters worse for older employees who plan to keep working is that employers often believe nudging these workers toward retirement is in their best interests. “There’s this assumption that when you hit 60 or 65, you’re looking to retire,” says Colleen Paulson, founder of Ageless Careers, where she provides career consulting to baby boomers and Gen X. However, per a poll she conducted last year on LinkedIn that garnered 2,472 responses, 26% of respondents said they didn’t ever plan to retire, suggesting that assumption