When I wrote an article on age discrimination last year, I couldn't believe the response: countless emails and at least five phone calls a week for several months. These communications weren't coming from researchers in the field but from workers across the country, male and female, semi-skilled, skilled, and professional. They shared stories of age discrimination that they, a spouse, or a parent had experienced or were currently living through, asked for information about their rights and what could be done, and thanked me for bringing light to an issue that “nobody talks about.”
References
1.
ArneL. Kallenberg. “Precarious Work, Insecure Workers: Employment Relations in Transition.” American Sociological Review (2007), 74:1–22. Addresses the implications of recent economic shifts for worker vulnerabilities and insecurities.
2.
ToddNelson.Ageism: Stereotyping and Prejudice Against Older Persons (MIT Press, 2004). An examination of the manifestations of age stereotypes in our culture.
3.
ErdmanB. Palmore. “Research Note: Ageism in Canada and the United States.” Journal of Cross Cultural Gerontology (2004), 19:41–46. Gives generalizeable statistical data, for both the U.S. and Canada, on attitudes toward older citizens and the experiences of older persons.
4.
VincentJ. RoscignoSherryMongReginaldByronGriffTester. “Age Discrimination, Social Closure, and Employment.” Social Forces (2007), 86:313–334. Looks at the dynamics of age discrimination in employment drawing on qualitative content from verified case files.
5.
RobertG. Valetta. “Declining Job Security.” Journal of Labor Economics (1999), 17:S170–197. Provides an overview of increasing worker insecurity and the changing nature of the employer-employee relationship.
