Ageism

The purpose of this discussion is to give you the opportunity to apply ethical theories to the complex issue of ageism in the workplace, particularly in the area of employment. In the modern workplace there appear to be the following three key issues that address ageism in employment, some of which have been exacerbated by recent economic issues and an aging population:

• Older job seekers fight ageism as a barrier to re-employment.
• Younger job seekers have trouble obtaining career entry.
• Evidence in many countries highlights that older worker employment and youth employment are not connected in any way.

This last point is generally known in economics as the “Lump of Labor Fallacy,” which challenges the view that if older workers are employed in a tight labor market, then they must be occupying the jobs of the country’s youth. Prepare and post a response to the following prompt:

Using at least one ethical perspective or theory from the text and one item of scholarly evidence, present an argument to a group of younger workers (regarding older worker and youth employment) in which you refute the notion that older workers take employment from the young.

Your initial post should be at least 300 words in length. Support your claims with examples from the required material(s) and/or other scholarly sources, and properly cite any references in APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center. 

• Mosser, K. (2013). Ethics and social responsibility (2nd ed.). San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc.