Ageism: how widespread is the issue in modern Scotland? Ageism, or age discrimination, is when an individual is treated unfairly due to their age. Last year, Age Scotland commissioned YouGov polling to investigate the scale of the issue. We asked 1,004 Scots ‘have you ever been discriminated against, treated unfairly, or missed out on opportunities because of your age?’: 1 in 5 said they had (19% of those surveyed) 23% did not know, suggesting ageism is not necessarily well understood or it may not be obvious someone has been subjected to it Respondents aged 25-34 were most likely to report experiencing ageism (27%), followed by people aged 18-24 (23%), and those over 55 (20%) 21% of female respondents said yes, compared to 17% of males We heard about ageism linked to people being perceived as both ‘older’ and ‘younger’. A clear majority of examples - over 70% - related to ageism in the workplace. As Scotland’s ageing population and changes to State Pension age make working into your late sixties and beyond more common, tackling ageism in the workplace will become even more vital.
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