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Sex discrimination is serious issue, but there are also other forms of discrimination nobody cares about. European Space Agency does not take job applications

by qwerta 13y ago

Sex discrimination is serious issue, but there are also other forms of discrimination nobody cares about. European Space Agency does not take job applications from people over 55. Not even for desk based jobs such as administrator or software developer. And this is public agency which supports equal oportunities :-) http://www.esa.int/hr/PDF/ESA-VN-ESTEC-2012-091,REV.1.pdf http://www.esa.int/hr/PDF/ESA-VN-ESTEC-2012-091,REV.1.pdf

apsec112 13y ago
They don't hire new people over 55, because they're a government agency built around the assumption that everyone will be there for forty years, and it's a bad idea to have 95-year-old employees. 55 is also the usual age of retirement in the public sector. For existing workers, this and other government agencies are massively biased in favor of the old. Everything important - salary, benefits, job title, responsibility, prestige, etc. - is given out almost entirely by seniority. At least in the US, there's basically no one who matters in government under age 45.
temp453463343 13y ago
Oh this is symptomatic of a larger problem of age discrimination in Europe. People have zero problem firing old people explicitly for their age. Many academic institutions have hard set requirements for retirement at 65. It's very very hard to work in to your 80s in Europe like it is in the US. (My experience more of less limited to academia) The idea (originating from France as far as I can tell) is that if you fire all the old folks you will make more room for a younger generation. It's a theory that has been disprove again and again. It's also why they try to cut the work week. If everyone can only work 30 hours then there will be more jobs! (Except it never ends up happening)
jrockway 13y ago
If you're over 55, can't you just start a company and be a contractor, charging them 10x what you would make as an employee? :)

by qwerta 13y ago

apsec112 13y ago

They don't hire new people over 55, because they're a government agency built around the assumption that everyone will be there for forty years, and it's a bad idea to have 95-year-old employees. 55 is also the usual age of retirement in the public sector. For existing workers, this and other government agencies are massively biased in favor of the old. Everything important - salary, benefits, job title, responsibility, prestige, etc. - is given out almost entirely by seniority. At least in the US, there's basically no one who matters in government under age 45.

temp453463343 13y ago

Oh this is symptomatic of a larger problem of age discrimination in Europe. People have zero problem firing old people explicitly for their age. Many academic institutions have hard set requirements for retirement at 65. It's very very hard to work in to your 80s in Europe like it is in the US. (My experience more of less limited to academia) The idea (originating from France as far as I can tell) is that if you fire all the old folks you will make more room for a younger generation. It's a theory that has been disprove again and again. It's also why they try to cut the work week. If everyone can only work 30 hours then there will be more jobs! (Except it never ends up happening)

jrockway 13y ago

If you're over 55, can't you just start a company and be a contractor, charging them 10x what you would make as an employee? :)