Chris Eastwood Automotive Ltd

AGE DISCRIMINATION IN THE MOTOR TRADE

A client of ours called us today to talk through a candidate’s details.

  First question asked was “How old is he?”  Oh dear!  In spite of all the publicity on the subject of this particular piece of legislation, the message hasn’t filtered through. If you wonder why, I would suggest that our client is busy attending to his own affairs, keeping his business profitable.  Unfortunately today that’s a luxury most of us can ill afford.  Recruitment Agents like all employers have become gate keepers and the burden is getting heavier.

  To set the record straight, we actually support a lot of this legislation and most particularly the age bit!  The motor trade is a skills driven industry and can it afford to be that picky?

  What is age discrimination all about any way?

  To look at some popular prejudices:  older workers

·        Inflexible

·        Unwilling / unable to learn new skills

·        Set in their ways

·        Slow

·        Looking for a job to take them up to retirement

  Or younger workers

·        Job hoppers

·        Mercenary

·        Unwilling to put in the hours

·        Learn the new skills quickly enough but then move on to capitalise on them

·        Going off on the grand tour every few years

·        Short term attitude

As we really know, most of these are misconceptions that are patently unfair when applied across the board, but may be true from time to time.  But that’s discrimination isn’t it?  “..Unfair treatment of a person ……..based on prejudice.”  

 But in an industry where skills are paramount isn’t this prejudice also a luxury we can’t afford.

  We’ve been placing temporary people into the Motor Trade for 12 years and, it’s true probably 70% of our temporary workforce – at any one time - is taken from the over 40’s.  Yet time and time again our temporary workers – having had the chance to prove their worth - are taken onto the permanent payroll of our plc clients.  Candidates unlikely to have gained an interview, let alone get onto the short list for a position with those same companies - often due to their age!

  Now the law says we can’t display a candidate’s age, silly really because it’s quite obvious from the candidates educational details what their age is!

  It seems the law was created to protect an ageing work force but it can work both ways!  For a senior managerial role, most clients would expect the successful candidate to have gained some years of experience but if you’re wording an ad, you need to be careful what you say.  REC isn’t very helpful on that subject either.  Here is part of their advice on wording ads:

“You should try to avoid stereotyping by, for example, advertising for a “flexible, enthusiastic” person to fit in with your “fast moving market place”, or a person “in touch with the latest thinking…” both of which are likely to be aimed at younger workers. Compare that to wording stating that your ideal candidate would need to be “reflective and have boardroom presence” or be “used to carrying a lot of responsibility”, which is more obviously aimed at an older worker. Both could be indirectly discriminatory.” REC website Corporate Members Legal Reference Guide / Diversity / Equal Opportunities

  So the wisdom is take care, particularly when placing advertisements in the press.  But keep an open mind too.  A good staffing mix in terms of Age, Race, Sex, Religion and even dare I say it sexual orientation can be healthy and good for business and ghettos, of any kind, can be stultifying!

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