That's an interesting term, "Grey Ceiling." It makes a lot of sense though. In the "Great Recession" a similar effect happened when many who lost their jobs to

That's an interesting term, "Grey Ceiling." It makes a lot of sense though. In the "Great Recession" a similar effect happened when many who lost their jobs took new jobs that they were overqualified for. This blocked out entry level workers and recent graduates, especially when other companies also adopted hiring freezes. A related situation can also be if a company stops growing. If you're not growing then the company doesn't have new opportunities for people to take on. There's few promotions then and work can be "maintenance mode" (as an early thread above talks about with engineers) for everyone, thus creating boredom and career stagnation.