Now, let me ground this in a number that honestly stopped me in my tracks. According to CIPHR’s 2025 Workplace Discrimination study, the most common form of discrimination was ageism. Nearly one in seven people said their age cost them job opportunities and around one in twelve said they’ve experienced age discrimination at work.

Let’s pause on that for a second. This isn’t a side issue. This isn’t something that happens “over there” to “other people.” This is happening right now, in offices, in boardrooms, on factory floors, across industries, across roles, across generations.

If we’re lucky enough to keep working, all of us will age into this bias. This is one of the few forms of discrimination that literally comes for everyone.

Today I want to rip the cover off what ageism really looks like at work and why it’s a silent killer of potential.

What is ageism?

Ageism is judging someone’s ability, their value, their potential, based on their age. That’s it. It’s bias tied to a number.

Something that often gets overlooked, though, is that it cuts both ways. It’s not just about being seen as too old. It’s also about being seen as too young.

What this could look like

Picture this. An older employee, sharp, hungry, dedicated, ready to learn, is skipped over for training. Why? The manager thinks, “They won’t be here long enough to make it worth it.” Now, a younger pro brings a killer idea and gets brushed off because they’re seen as too junior. 

While it may sound small when it happens once or twice, add it all up, and what do you get? A culture where nobody raises their hand. Nobody shares their ideas. Nobody thinks their voice matters.

That is how potential dies.

The Laws

Ageism. It’s illegal. Full stop.

Here in the UK, we’ve got the Equality Act 2010. It protects from age discrimination in every single part of your working life. Recruitment, promotions, training, pay, dismissals, everything.

The law covers:

1. Direct discrimination: like, “Sorry, we won’t promote you. You’re too old.”
2. Indirect discrimination: think offering training only to recent grads
3. Harassment: Those “harmless jokes” about age that … actually aren’t harmless
4. Victimisation: being sidelined just for speaking up about ageism

Yes, there are a few exceptions. An employer can sometimes justify an age-based decision if it’s genuinely necessary and proportionate. But let’s be clear, no, you can’t just say you want fresh young blood and call it a strategy. No, you can’t force people to retire anymore, the default retirement age was scrapped in 2011.

Our next two sections will explore how to actually build workplaces that are genuinely age-inclusive.

Build cross-generational mentorship

When I say the word, mentorship, what picture pops into your head? 

Chances are, you’re picturing an older, seasoned professional sitting across from a bright-eyed intern. The wise one passing down decades of experience, the younger one soaking it all up like a sponge.

Well, mentorship can actually be a two-way street. Younger employees have got just as much to offer. They bring new tools, fresh ways of thinking, perspectives that those who’ve been around a while may never have considered.

Do you have a team member who’s brilliant at TikTok trends or has the 411 on all things pop culture? Pair them up with someone who knows how to charm a tough client. Let them trade skills. Let them teach each other.

You could also think about creating mini workshops. One employee shows how to master LinkedIn personal branding. Another runs a session on Excel hacks. Suddenly, learning isn’t top-down, it’s everywhere. It’s normal.

Audit hiring and promotion processes for bias

Here’s the thing about bias in hiring and promotions, it rarely kicks down the door screaming. It’s sneaky. It hides in the small stuff, like the words you use in a job ad, the assumptions you make in an interview, or the quiet gut feeling about who’s ready for the next big role.

Just look at some of the job ads that people are putting out. Phrases like ‘digital native’ or ‘high energy’ might sound harmless to you, but they send sneaky signals about age. On the other hand, asking for ‘decades of experience’ is like hanging a giant “Millennials and Gen Z need not apply” sign. See how easy it is to lock people out without even realising it?

• Run a language detox on your job ads: swap age-coded phrases for skills. Instead of digital native, say comfortable with digital tools. Instead of decades of experience, just ask for the expertise you actually need
• Check your interview habits: are you assuming someone younger can’t lead? Or that someone older can’t learn? Ask questions that let people show you what they can do, rather than assuming based on their age
• Make promotion criteria crystal clear: if it’s all based on emotions, bias has already snuck in. Write down what good looks like, and stick to it
• Audit the outcomes: who’s actually getting hired and promoted? If everyone looks the same age, you’ve got a red flag waving in your face

Bias doesn’t vanish on its own. You have to hunt it down, drag it into the daylight, and call it out for what it is. Otherwise, you’re just going to continue building teams that are much blander than they need to be.

Before you go

Age doesn’t tell you if someone can lead, innovate, or adapt. It only tells you how many candles were on their last cake. Yet we let that number dictate promotions, projects, and pay. Ridiculous, isn’t it?

When we let numbers define people at work, we’re building stereotypes. We’re boxing potential into neat little limits, and that’s just lazy management.

So let me be blunt. Are you seriously letting a number decide someone’s value? Or are you actually looking at what they bring to the table?

If you focus on potential and drive instead of age, your team stops being “just a team” and starts being unstoppable.

Part six of a six-part series.

Click here to read parts one , two, three, four, and five here.