Employers insert descriptive words and phrases into job ads that lead to fewer applicants over age 40. Some word choices are obvious give aways while others are subtle.
Source: Help wanted: No over-50s need apply – MarketWatch
One of the problems in the U.S. is that the labor force participation rate is lower than economists would like to see.
Not everyone can work – they might be caretakers of children or family members. They have disabilities.
They might be unable to find work appropriate to their skill set, where they live, and choose not to work versus working at a low paid job that does not use their skills. (It may be useful to think in terms of household income rather than individual income – a household may have sufficient income that not all workers there need work.)
Various forms of discrimination discourage workers. This can be sex, race or age-based discrimination.
Obviously, in a idealized world, everyone who wants to work could find employment that was rewarding and would choose to work. But that does not exist in the real world, unfortunately.
Perhaps there are steps to increase labor force participation as a way of filling positions. On the other hand, some positions generally go to younger “new workers”. As mentioned in another post here, the costs of training a new airline pilot are high – thus, there is little desire to retrain a 50-year-old as an airline pilot who will be forced to retired by age 65 if medical issues do not ground this individual sooner. Consequently, many positions will always demand young “new workers”. Similarly, certain physically demanding jobs historically go to the young, and in some cases, permit full retirement in as little as 20 or 25 years of work (in their 40’s).
