[Tacis]

Even if you send paper cover letters with first class postage for a known vacancy for which you are perfectly qualified, if you are over age 50, you will not get a response.

There is no more widely spread discrimination in this country than the discrimination against older job applicants. At the same time, no discrimination violation is more widely disregarded.

Do a Lexis/Nexis search an you'll find lots of cases of age discrimination suits involving the TERMINATION of older workers but few, if any, involving an employers failure to hire an older worker.

Once an HR weanie has decidied that a candidate or a stack of candidates or a file cabinet of candidates will not be hired, there is no reason to waste on time on them, there is no profit in it, no return on effort. And, it doesn't count against the oufit in a competition like the Baldwin Awards.

[antaresequity]

Two people who are equal in all regards except age come looking for a job: I would hire the younger one. I would do so based on my ability to intercept habits before they form...and install my own workstyle/ethic into the individual to the extent its profitable for me...Is that discrimination?

I dont think so.

Everybody who has ever worked for me, came to work each day knowing that they had to earn their right to come back the next day...and as a team...they would have it no other way...believe me you...If you might think I am tough...their co-workers were ruthless...and the last thing I would ever do is let the team down, by hiring somone who thought they were entitled to a job...

Nearly 60% of the people I hired over the years, went on to form their own business, or partnerships with other former employees of mine...I used to tell my people: "If I am not bidding against you in 5 years, I will fire you anyway...so you have two choices...be the best...or take a hike..."

You know I would bet this fellow who went to the interviews mentioned how "unfair" the job market was....Instant door pass when you hear that kind of crap...

I especially like the guys that would offer to work for two weeks without agreement...so confident were they, they would take a risk like this...I liked risk takers...these guys would come in an kick butt...and end up negotiating from strength...not weakness for their contract...born leaders too most of them...

[templar]

There is no more widely spread discrimination in this country than the discrimination against older job applicants.

Looking around the local Walmarts, you wouldn't believe that.

[Polybius]

Even if you send paper cover letters with first class postage for a known vacancy for which you are perfectly qualified, if you are over age 50, you will not get a response.

Maybe it has something to do with the generation that, 35 years ago, was screaming, "Don't trust anybody over 30!"

[gcruse]

Anyone over fifty can hang it up. I'm lucky to have gotten within shouting distance of retirement before finding out that age discrimination is the deadliest force at work in unemployment.

[Alouette]

Even if you send paper cover letters with first class postage for a known vacancy for which you are perfectly qualified, if you are over age 50, you will not get a response.

Who puts their birthdate on a resume? I don't. I got laid off last week and I have received half a dozen calls from recruiters, with at least one interview scheduled for the day after New Year's.

I don't know what the problem is with the guy who claims he has sent out 1,000 resumes and had no response. I get plenty of response for far fewer applications. But, I have been contracting for 5 years and it's been "musical chairs" ever since the Y2K heyday was over.

The last recruiter I spoke to, asked me straight off: "What's your status to work in the United States?"

I said, "I'm a U.S. citizen. I was born and raised in the U.S.A."

She said, "You are the first person I have talked to all day who is not here on H1B visa." Then she went on and on about "why don't more Americans apply for these [high-tech] jobs?"