Does the industry have an ageism problem? You betcha! 😒
Laura Bensman has worked in the advertising industry for more than three decades, but in all those years she has only attended one retirement party. There's a reason for that: In advertising, and at agencies in particular, it's rare employees ever reach retirement age. They're often squeezed out long before.
"It's a Peter Pan industry," says Bensman, a Naples, Florida-based senior writer who turned 57 this year.
While age discrimination certainly occurs in other industries, in advertising it's on "steroids," as Bensman puts it.
The issue has long taken a back seat to other biases, such as sexism and racism, but it's getting more traction as the latest "ism" in need of reform as ad industry crusaders push back on the persistent displacement of older workers.
(Read the entire article by downloading the PDF)