Tom Brady is a now free agent<\/a>, but the NFL player doesn\u2019t have the same worries as millions of Americans over 40.<\/p>\n Workers over 40 are only about half as likely, or less, to get a job offer than younger workers if employers know their age, according to research released this week<\/a> that was conducted by economics professor David Neumark at the University of California, Irvine. The data was adjusted for differences in skills, fit and availability.<\/p>\n Key to the study was a major change that a company made to its hiring systems. Previously all applicants at a national restaurant chain (which wasn\u2019t named in the study) had filled out an initial application form in a face-to-face meeting with a restaurant manager. So their age was apparent from the get-go. <\/p>\n Under the new system, applications began first with a standardized, online, electronic screen. This included over 100 questions designed to find out a candidate\u2019s skills, experience, employability and other attributes related to the job. But it contained no age screen.<\/p>\n
\n When managers could determine an applicant\u2019s age group, those over 40 were between 46% and 65% less likely to get a job offer than those under 40.
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