Call to unite as one generation’s ‘failure’ felt by all

As the Australian population grows older, ageism has proliferated – shortening life spans, contributing to elder abuse, or pushing willing employees out of the workforce.

Many overlook the issue because it does not yet affect them, or they perpetuate it due to tensions between generations.

Age Discrimination Commissioner, Robert Fitzgerald, and World Health Organization campaign consultant, Marlene Krasovitsky, acknowledged inequities between different age demographics in a joint address at the National Press Club, but noted the need to unite on ageism.

“The consequential failure of our generation to deal with one of the most significant economic problems impacts both young people and us as old people,” Mr Fitzgerald said.

“This is a generation who has continually failed to fix the tax system over 30 years, and the consequence of that is that we are a low-taxing, high-spending nation.”

For young people, this has worsened housing affordability and education costs, and for older Australians, this means many “quite rightly” will have to pay higher co-contributions for aged care, Mr Fitzgerald said.

This highlights the shared interests across ages and shows how addressing ageism will help everyone, Dr Krasovitsky said while calling on the government to establish Ageism Awareness Day.