Age Discrimination against Middle-aged and Older Employees in China: How Discrimination Affects the Younger Workforce
HKUST IEMS Thought Leadership Brief No. 91
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Age discrimination against employees over middle age is widespread in Chinese organizations, leading young Chinese employees view this mistreatment as unfair and consequently experience heightened job insecurity regarding their future within the organization. Those who observe higher levels of age discrimination in their organizations tend to exert less effort at work and become less engaged. They also tend to have more counterproductive behaviors and reduced creativity. The findings underscore the urgent need for Chinese organizations to recognize and address age discrimination as a pervasive issue affecting both older and younger employees in the workforce.Therefore, it is critical we address age biases in China’s workplaces and foster an inclusive work environment that values contributions from all age groups.
About the author
Dr. Jingjing Ma is an assistant professor in the department of management at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. She obtained her Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from Michigan State University. Her research primarily focuses on leadership, employee proactive behaviors, and interpersonal processes in the workplace. Her work has been published at leading management journals including Academy of Management Journal and Journal of Applied Psychology.
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