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As we consider how businesses can and should respond to the challenge of ageism, it’s worth examining both the impacts on all companies and the resources they have at their disposal to influence the political debate.   

As I write in winter 2025, we are still facing substantial skills shortages in the UK.    The quality of access to management and leadership is also in short supply.  Yet, paradoxically, many businesses make it difficult—if not impossible—for older workers to continue in their jobs.   

Additionally, the government appears to be actively dissuading businesses from using the apprenticeship levy to develop the skills and knowledge of older workers.  Instead, it seeks to refocus these opportunities on young people.   

We also observe that many businesses lack worker-friendly policies that enable older individuals to contribute part-time, especially when they may be managing caregiving responsibilities or simply desire more flexibility in their work arrangements.   

The Political Perspective

Business organisations can have a significant impact on the legal and regulatory environment that older individuals face as they seek to continue, maintain, and develop their working lives beyond the age of 50.  These organisations could help ensure that access to funding for training and development is equally available to individuals of all ages.   

They could also influence policies to ensure that lifelong learning is not just a catchphrase but a reality.   Businesses could actively partner with employees, educational institutions, and government funding bodies to make lifelong learning a reality.   

Moreover, businesses could help drive change at the other end of the age spectrum.  I was struck by a conversation I had with a restaurant floor manager a couple of weeks ago.  He shared that his employers paid workers minimum wage based solely on their age, not on their knowledge, skills, or experience.  When I pointed out that it is illegal to pay people differently for the same job based solely on age, he was surprised.  He expressed a desire to be able to grade employees based on performance and skill rather than age—but his employer would not allow it.   

Similar age-related biases are also built into the benefits system.  People receive different benefits at different ages, reinforcing these inequalities.   

Lobbying Opportunities 

Businesses could take the lead in lobbying for age equality.  They could ensure that their employment policies don’t default to paying the minimum wage based on age but instead reward individuals based on performance.    On the other end, they could stop actively discriminating against older workers based on the false assumption that, at age 55 or 60, individuals have only five more years of work ahead of them.   

The evidence suggests the opposite: older workers are more likely to remain with an employer for a more extended period and tend to be more consistent in their attendance.   

It’s interesting to note the partnership between the Campaign for Ageing Better and Business in the Community.    Despite this, major business bodies, such as the CBI, the Federation of Small Businesses, and the British Chambers of Commerce, have yet to engage with age-friendly policies fully.  They have not pushed for regulatory or legislative changes to create a level playing field that encourages best practices in this area.   

Without such action, businesses that are committed to best practices are effectively penalised—outcompeted by those that refuse to evolve.   

Is ageism in business a political issue?   

Absolutely.  In any context where multiple stakeholders are trying to influence outcomes, politics is involved—and ageism is no exception.   

Charles McLachlan is the founder of FuturePerfect and on a mission to transform the future of work and business. The Portfolio Executive programme is a new initiative to help executives build a sustainable and impactful second-half-career. Creating an alternative future takes imagination, design, organisation and many other thinking skills. Charles is happy to lend them to you.