Protecting against age discrimination
Schenck “It wasn’t easy,” he said. And while he hoped to find a job in his field, he was well aware the opportunity landscape was sparse. He says he understood the economics of the newspaper’s decision to cut his position, but it was tough emotionally to leave a job he’d had, and enjoyed, for so long. Still, Buchiere couldn’t imagine reinventing himself for a totally different career, and hunted for newspaper jobs in the region. “I was going to try to keep doing what I was doing.” With his skill set, he found more job opportunities in the southern states, but balked at the idea of uprooting his then-teenage son, who has autism, and his wife. “I was starting to ponder [moving], but for a lot of people, that’s just not an option.” It was networking that ultimately landed Buchiere a reporting job at Geneva-based Finger Lakes Times in March 2016. It’s about an hour’s drive from his home, and he took what he describes as a “substantial” pay cut. He says the priority was keeping his family from having to move. Troubles have hit some fields of work harder than others. In the newspaper industry, jobs fell 45 percent from 2008 to 2017, according to Pew Research Center analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment Statistics survey data. Buchiere was among thousands who lost their jobs. 40
Protections for aging workers have been around for decades. The federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) of 1967 makes it illegal to discriminate against workers over the age of 40. The rule generally applies to employers with over 20 employees, although several states, including New York, have made their own laws to bring smaller companies, and lower ages, into the fold as well. The New York State Department of Labor website — labor.ny.gov — gives step by step guidance on how to file a discrimination claim. Yet in 2017, the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), which handles all types of discrimination claims, received 20,857 claims of age discrimination. More than one in five of all claims handled by the EEOC were age-related, according to the AARP. Interestingly, a 2009 Supreme Court ruling puts a higher burden of proof on those claiming age discrimination. A recent study by the American Association of Retired People (AARP) shows that 72 percent of women between the ages of 45 and 74 said they thought people encountered age discrimination in the workplace, only 57 percent of men shared that view. Kerryanne Schenck of Mexico is a music teacher at a private middle school in Syracuse. As she works toward her master’s degree and New York State Education certification — an effort she set aside to raise young triplets — a series of frustrating roadblocks has threatened to derail her goals. “I do worry about if I want to go back to public school that I will have ‘too many’ years [of age], and won’t get hired because they won’t want to pay me for them,” said Schenck, who is nearing 50. Simply put, she wants to be compensated at a comparable rate that takes into account her experience as well as the investment she’s made with coursework. Indeed, most older workers who find themselves re-entering the job market are making less than they were previously. Only one in 10 makes as much money as they did before, the ProPublica analysis found. Pay rates not only affect the near-term for workers, but their ability to plan for retirement as well. It takes time to rebuild, both financially and professionally. Some areas of work seem to carry OSWEGO COUNTY BUSINESS
a higher risk of real or perceived age discrimination. Technology, for example, and the entertainment industry, are fields commonly sought by younger workers, and are considered unchartered territory for workers of later generations. More and more, new jobs are being offered without traditional benefits like health insurance or 401k plans, or with reduced incentives that force employees to take drastic cuts in pay, or make other concessions like regular travel or an unanticipated move. Factors like these add stress to already challenging situations. Schenck has also hit obstacles in her quest for New York state teacher certification, which is required to teach in the public school system. She taught for 12 years in New York and eight years in Maryland before returning to teaching at a private school and deciding to pursue her master’s degree and state certification. Master’s degree programs in education typically take two years of full-time coursework. “My undergraduate degree was perfectly fine to certify me for 12 years and now returning back to the profession, it is not,” said Schenck. “The (New York) State Education Department will tell you it’s because certification requirements have changed, but why do my colleagues that hold the same degree from the same time period with the same age get to keep their certification?” Trends in employment are leaving many mature job-seekers feeling the cold shoulder. In general, the working population is aging: people are living longer, healthier lives. Some people choose to work longer in order to retain health insurance benefits, or pad retirement income. Many opt to work into their 70s, past typical retirement age, simply because they love their jobs and aren’t ready to retire. Workers over age 50 in America are 40 million strong, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. “I was thinking I might work until [age] 64,” said Gerber, who added that she enjoyed her job, and the people she worked with felt more like family than coworkers. She’s still angry about the way her career ended, and admits the emotional scars sometimes weigh more than the financial burdens. There was pride in working for so many years in one place, Gerber explained. But the end being let go, and not making it to retirement seems a story somehow unfinished. “You feel like you’ve lost your right to retire.” APRIL / MAY 2019