Posted Oct 19, 2022, 7:20 AMUpdated on Oct 19, 2022 at 11:26
“It’s unlikely to see a company hire someone like me. Seniors have an image of rigid and complicated people. After 32 years in office, Christian *, 59, has been unemployed since July. The salesperson did not make the six pharmacy visits per day and the 5 orders requested by his new manager. “To meet the goals, the others tampered with and tipped the phone reorders into visits and physical orders,” he says. There followed two “targeting” meetings, a burn-out with sick leave, then a dismissal. “Psychologically, it’s complicated because there is no way out. It takes a monstrous pot shot to find work at 59, ”says Christian.
While the government has just launched a consultation on pension reform, the first round of discussion, the employment of seniors, is the elephant in the room. Companies complain of not being able to recruit even though seniors (50-65 years) remain on the sidelines. Despite a clear recovery since the 2000s, the employment rate of French people aged 55 to 64 stood at 56% in 2021 compared to 61% in the euro zone, 71.8% in Germany and 76.9% in Germany. Sweden, according to the OECD. It is on the other hand in the average of the euro zone between 50 and 59 years but collapses between 60 and 64 years. What is this difference?