Ageism: Discrimination And Stereotypes Of Older People

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What is ageism? Ageism is the process of systematic of discriminating and stereotypes of older people (Bodner, 2009). Many older people are facing this problem today. Some people may compare ageism to racism. I do agree somewhat with that statement. I chose the topic questions because we hear about ageism, but not really understanding the effects of it. My parents are aging and I hear the challenges they face every day. When they go to the grocery stores, people talk to them like they are mentally challenged or they hard of hearing. Yes, my parents move slow but it does not mean they are not cognitive impaired. This must be hard for the older people that are currently working. They face ageism in the workplace more often than younger …show more content…
Personal ageism is a person’s attitude towards older people. Institutional ageism established rules, practices, that discriminate older people such as mandatory retirement. Intentional ageism is attitudes, rules, or practices that are held, implemented, and engaged in with knowledge that they are biased against older people. Unintentional ageism is practiced without the perpetrator recognizing the bias (2007). To combat these different types of ageism, the policy was put in place for age discrimination. In 1967, President Lyndon signed the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). The act was promoting the employment of older workers based on the ability rather than age (2007). In 2005, there were 16,585 age-bias complaints were filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). EEOC is a federal agency that administers and enforces laws against workplace discrimination. Out those complaints only 18 percent were resolved through administrative closure and 1.2 percent were successfully resolved (2007). The low percentages may come from older people not reporting the cases and going through the court proceeding due to lack of money for attorneys or lack of evidence. However, ageism is becoming more prevalent due to the baby boomers and they are living longer. They have a voice in making changes. For example, North Carolina, the tax Simplification and Reduction Act were signed into law on July 23, 2013. Part of the tax act was changed to the itemized deductions. The itemized deduction that older people utilized is medical and dental expenses. The older community utilized their political powers and that portion of the law was changed. As of 2015, medical and dental expenses are part of the itemized deductions (North Carolina Itemized Deductions, n.d.). Some managers have both positive and