I’m 65 and just lost my job. Will ageism stop me from getting another?

October 10, 2025 — 5.01am

I’m about to turn 65 and have recently been made redundant from the clothing industry. As so much production has now been moved overseas, I’m unlikely to secure another job in my field. I had intended to work into my 70s. I don’t have enough superannuation to retire, and the age pension is another two years away.

Do I have to reveal my age or date of birth to prospective employers? I am concerned about age discrimination. I’ve been looking for jobs both within my field of expertise and outside it. I’ve noticed many jobs, even retail ones, ask if you can lift heavy weights (such as boxes). I’ve recently been diagnosed with osteoporosis and I have a niggly back – do I have to disclose this?

When it comes to workplace issues, it’s often the case that a larger systemic problem makes a specific situation worse.Credit: Simon Letch

I’m really sorry to hear you were made redundant. The Australian clothing industry, as I’m sure you know, which was flourishing less than half a century ago, was devastated by significant tariff reductions that began in the early 1990s.

Estimates now suggest that 97 per cent of the clothing we wear in Australia is manufactured overseas. The mostly small operations still making clothes here do a wonderful job, but to say they’re fighting an uphill battle against cheap, often highly ethically dubious overseas labour is a massive understatement.

I can see how you don’t hold out much hope of a new role in the same sector.

I asked Professor Joellen Riley Munton from the faculty of law at the University of Technology Sydney to give her expert opinion on whether you have to disclose things such as age and health conditions to prospective employers.

You may not need to give your birthdate, but most employers will need to know your details if they decide to employ you.

“This is a difficult one. We do have protections from discrimination at work, in the General Protections against adverse action in Section 351 of the Fair Work Act. These do cover age and disability, and they do apply to prospective employees,” she says.

“The provisions, however, allow for an employer to defend a discriminatory decision on the basis that the candidate could not meet the ‘inherent requirements of the job’. If it really is necessary to lift heavy boxes to do the job, and the candidate has a medical condition that would prevent them from doing that safely, that would be a legitimate reason for not selecting them for the job.”

On the specific subject of disclosing your age, Munton says that you may not need to give your birthdate, but most employers will need to know your details if they decide to employ you.

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“Apart from anything else, there are concerns these days with identity theft. Everyone who has official business with us – banks, creditors, superannuation funds, employers – have good reasons to know our true names and dates of birth,” she says.

“A lot of online application forms these days require these kinds of details, and it is difficult to press ‘send’ on an electronic form if you have left any blanks. It is very unwise to lie on application forms because you could be subsequently dismissed for dishonesty.”

But Munton sympathises with you and agrees that there is still a lot of discrimination in the labour market, particularly against older workers and those with medical conditions.

“Employers are not supposed to take those factors into account in making hiring decisions, and there are laws ‘on the books’ that people could use to bring complaints. But, in reality, it is very hard to make someone employ you if they don’t want to take the risk of hiring someone they perceive as less fit than other candidates.”

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As you’ll know if you read Work Therapy regularly, it’s often the case that a larger systemic problem makes a specific situation worse. And that’s the case here, according to Munton.

“Maybe the problem for older people lies principally with our aged pension system. Lifting the pension age to 67 [which happened in 2023] has created hardship for people, especially if they haven’t been able to build up savings in the superannuation system.

“Casual workers, and women who have had careers interrupted by caring responsibilities, frequently have little in the way of superannuation to rely on to cover any gap between work and the pension. And I feel especially sorry for people in very physically demanding jobs. It must be very hard to do heavy-labouring work into one’s late 60s.”

There is, though, information available that may help you navigate this difficult career moment.

“One place to look for advice and relief might be any insurance policy attached to an employee’s superannuation fund, covering incapacity to work,” Munton said.

Send your Work Therapy questions to [email protected]

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