Doing Time: Age Discrimination

After a certain age, the job market can start to feel like a sentence you didn't earn. The interviews dry up, the "overqualified" emails roll in, and you start wondering if it's you.

It's not. In this episode of American Refugee, I talk about age discrimination: what it looks like, why it's so easy to dismiss, and what it does to people who still have plenty to give.

If you're dealing with it right now, you're not imagining it. Here are a few real resources:

• AARP: Age Discrimination Fact Sheet & Rights: aarp.org/work/age-discrimination/fact-sheet/
• AARP Foundation: free legal resources for older adults facing workplace age discrimination: aarp.org/aarp-foundation
• U.S. EEOC: file an age discrimination charge: 1-800-669-4000 · eeoc.gov
• Know your rights: the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) protects workers 40 and older in hiring, firing, pay, promotions, and layoffs, at employers with 20 or more employees.

If this one hits home, follow American Refugee Substack or on Spotify, and share it with someone who needs to hear it. And if you've lived this yourself, hit reply. I'd like to hear your story.

Intro/outro music: "Awaken Child" by Alex Kaplan, used with the artist's permission. New music from Alex is coming soon; listen wherever you stream music.

Stay awake out there.

American Refugee