Over 40, over-qualified and over the hill?

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While Australia continues to have its lowest unemployment rate in decades, ICT professionals in their middle years aren't sharing in the rewards. One in three ICT professionals in the 41- to 50-year-old age bracket have been unemployed in the past five years, at a time when the sector is experiencing an unemployment rate of 3.84 per cent, nearly half a per cent lower than the national average. This is one of findings from the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) Employment Survey for 2007, released today by the Australia Computer Society (ACS). ACS president Philip Argy said the higher level of unemployment across the 41-50 age group was of concern. "It is more likely that this unemployment is derived from a combination of age discrimination and either real or imagined concerns about the currency of their ICT skills." The survey also revealed that 19.2 per cent of respondents felt that they had experienced discrimination on the basis of their age. "The survey results demonstrate that mature and experienced workers are being sidelined and their skill levels and corporate memory are being ignored. With the ICT industry suffering from major skills shortages, Australia is not in a position to ignore skilled professionals," Argy said. http://www.smh.com.au/news/biztech/over-40-overqualified-and-over-the-hill/2007/09/12/1189276781476.html