Age discrimination alive and well in financial services

Age discrimination alive and well in financial services

MEDIA RELEASE: For immediate release

Sydney, 5th December 2012 – Seven in 10 Australia-based finance professionals say age discrimination exists in the financial services industry, and nearly four in 10 (35%) claim to have experienced it personally, according to eFinancialCareers’ latest Diversity Survey.

And it’s not all older workers either. Of those who said they had personally experienced age discrimination, 31% said it was because they were “too young” while 35% reported it was because they were “too old”.

“The industry is regularly accused of suffering from a culture of ageism, and these latest results suggest that there is still a long way to go,” said eFinancialCareers Managing Director Asia Pacific, George McFerran. “What’s surprising though is that younger workers are also reporting that they have been discriminated against. This may be a result of increasing pressure in a tight hiring market, where there are currently fewer middle management roles available for younger staff to apply for.”

An overwhelming majority of respondents (80%), however, agree that workers aged 30 and under are adequately valued by their company. When asked the same question about workers aged over 50, the percentage of respondents in agreement dropped to 65%.  Asked what policies or practices would be most effective to ensure all ages are respected and valued in the company, nearly a third of respondents (32%) agree a change of culture is necessary for things to change.

“Making the effort to support and retain experienced workers during this time of slowdown is an essential strategy for firms’ long-term success,” says Mr McFerran. “Right now there is a strong argument for financial services companies to put in place deliberate strategies for engaging and retaining older workers to ease skills shortages and sure-up their future for the long term.”

“They bring professional contacts, relationships, credibility and - most of all - experience.  Their expertise during challenging times like these can prevent younger professionals from making potentially unwise decisions due to a lack of perspective that can only be remedied by experience.”

Mr McFerran recommends financial services firms revisit their retention strategies to ensure they are fair and equitable to older professionals, as well their recruitment strategies to ensure older workers are represented in a way that brings long term value to the organisation.

***ENDS***

About the annual eFinancialCareers Diversity Survey

The eFinancialCareers Diversity Survey took place between September, 28th 2012 and October, 15th 2012. The survey polled a total of 292 employed finance professionals living in Australia.  The survey provides comprehensive research on finance professionals’ sentiments towards diversity in the finance industry in 2012.

About eFinancialCareers

eFinancialCareers, a Dice Holdings, Inc. service, is the leading global career site network for professionals working in the investment banking, asset management and securities industries. The website provides financial services professionals with job opportunities, job market news and analysis, salary surveys and career advice. Recruiters and employers can post jobs targeting specific sectors within the financial services industry, both buy-side and sell-side, and can search the resume database for highly qualified and specialized professionals. eFinancialCareers has a network of co-branded career sites with industry-leading trade publications and offers local websites in 19 markets and five languages primarily across North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific. Please visit www.eFinancialCareers.com.au for more information.

For further information please contact:

Cape Public Relations +61 2 8218 2190

Luke Roberts luke@capepublicrelations.com M: 0422 855 930

Jane Thomson jane@capepublicrelations.com M: 0413 682 377