Of all the discriminatory ‘-isms,’ where does ageism sit? TV doco weighs up the insult.

Perhaps few Fifty Up Club members would disagree that ageism is both more overlooked and tolerated than the increasing list of other discriminatory “-isms”.

Every time we talk about age discrimination, especially in the workplace, the hurtful instances flow in many asking, despite it being unlawful, what can we do about it?

A helpful addition to the debate will air very soon on SBS TV in a short doco season (see here) called What does Australia really think about… .  starting Aug 18 at 8.30 pm.

Ageism (on-air Aug 25) is presented by actor Noni Hazlehurst and uses hidden cameras to spy on private behaviour and surveys to reveal our broader attitudes.

The candid camera traps one salesman telling an elderly couple (a stereotypical image in itself) shopping for a smartphone, “ If I show you how this one works, you will just forget it.”

I haven’t seen the show yet, but the newspaper report on it says they were ‘devastated’, and an angry Hazlehurst sheds a tear.

The programs, which also deal with obesity and disability, also use university surveys to find:

• 31% of Australians over the age of 55 sometimes feel invisible to society
• 72% agreed that older people are often lonely.

It’s a subject SBS seems to have covered a few times, as a quick search reveals. A heartbreaking news story here about Kate Rowe, aged 63, a  skilled woman who moved to Noosa from Sydney and couldn’t get any work, she says on account of age.
 
And from further back but still relevant the story of a 57-year-old Anne Moore who decided to ‘pivot’ from career management jobs to a start-up software company (see here).
 
Her best advice for older workers is not to become disengaged from being as digitally literate as possible.

 “The ageing workforce must take responsibility for ensuring their own relevance and skillsets are maintained. We need to be embarking on lifelong learning because we are all going to be working for many more years than we may have thought – and technology is impacting every aspect of our lives.”

I’ll be watching the new show. Will you and will it wind you up, or are you resigned to the world as it is? 

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