Law And More

Emile Ratelband - Legally, He Will Have to Remain Age 69, Rules Dutch Court

Dutch motivational speaker, 69, Emile Ratelband went to court for an unusual complaint.

He stated that his birth date, widely available online and elsewhere, was limiting his opportunities for employment and for scoring on Tinder.

His request was for permission to legally change the date of his birth so that he would be classified as 49. He argued that age had become as fluid as gender identity.

The Dutch court didn't agree. In turning down his request it indicated that associated with one's official age came rights such as to vote and obligations such as attending school. In addition, years of records would be altered. Here are more details from the Herald-Whig. 

Ratelband indicates he will appeal the decision.

Another approach to eliminating age discrimination is the same as eliminating mentioning race in media coverage. At one time, baby boomers recall, race was frequently cited in media reporting. Then, that was banned.

The same restriction can be imposed on mentioning age. Currently, of course, one's age is plastered across the internet. It is also regularly included in media reports. Ratelband is on the money: Ageism hurts careers. Here is my article on that form of discrimination or lack of diversity published on Odwyerpr.com. 

Age should become irrelevant. Even in medical matters it is becoming less of a predictable variable. One medical doctor asked me if I had all my original body parts - such as my own knees and hips. I answered "yes." The doctor was visibly surprised. She shouldn't have been. 

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers after-50, and college admission.

In addition, this blog welcomes sponsored content.

Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

 

The Internet - What Lawyer Hasn't Been Played

The Internet has failed to live up to the early promise that it would create a level playing field in just about everything.

Instead, the Barbarians are at gate.

That everything the internet was suppose to usher in ranged from universal access to media attention to being able to succeed in business without a huge budget or even a gold-plated network. 

Like the leaders of the emerging counterculture in the late 1960s, the front lines of the internet - the Netizens - were positioned and packaged as spiritually, socially, and intellectually evolved. 

And, the obstacles of class, gender, language, and geography in connecting with other human beings would no longer exist. 

Little of that has come to pass.

In Vanity Fair, Maya Kosoff documents the failure.

Sure, all voices can be heard. But the loudest ones on the internet tend to promote hate or seek to confuse.

Businesses using supposedly low-cost Facebook advertising are now suing Facebook for allegedly inflating, up to 900%, the user metrics associated with video. The higher the metrics, the more Facebook billed. And, how many lawyers have been badly burned by web con artists? 

As in Orwell's  "Animal Farm," many of the Netizens considered themselves more equal that other Netizens.

Some of those more equal than others seem to have the darkness and myopia of human nature of William Shakespeare's classic characters like King Lear. 

Yeah, as the counterculture movement hardened it seemed to mutate into propaganda endorsing sex-on-demand, drug-taking, cult thinking, violence, and throwing away a career. 

The impediments to connecting seem to be increasing, not melting away like the Wicked Witch in "The Wizard of Oz."

Who hasn't been flamed on the internet because they were different from those who had figured out how to attract, hold, and grow followers?

The gang of earnest freelancers at Mediabistro.com put me under attack for two days.

The fans of Gawker explicitly tormented me for about four years. Included were weekly executions in which the decision would be made if I would be granted clemency. 

Unfortunately, being on the internet, both web and mobile, is a necessary evil. The snail mail mode of developing business is dead. Attending conferences in-person to network and job hunt has become too expensive at this time of stagnant wages and fees.

Yes, google has become the resume for individuals. That's what Richard Bolles hammers in the 2019 edition of "What Color Is Your Parachute?"

Google also has become the homepage for businesses. It overrides websites. And in his book "The Four," Scott Galloway predicts it will eliminate the concept of branding. Instead of sticking with brand choice Planet Fitness when we move to Ohio, we know to key in on google "fitness centers - Eastern OH." A lower-cost fit might pop up on the first page of google. 

Here's an analogy to the wonderous potential of the internet: baby boomers' access to a college education.

That seemed like the exit from being regulated to low-status, low-earning work.

Then, soon enough, it became obvious that not all school credentials were equal. That is exactly what the current trial "Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard" is about.

The stink that stuck on our realization that the game was still rigged hasn't diminished. But, we tell our grandchildren that they must go to college - and beyond in higher education. 

Likewise, we are locked into the internet. 

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers after-50, and college admission.

In addition, this blog welcomes sponsored content.

Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

The "Parachute Way" - The Job Search as Forever

Since the 1970s, the "What Color Is Your Parachute?" job-search guide has been a must, for all phases of a career.

Overseen by Richard N. Bolles, it documents that the job offer frequently goes to those best at pitching themselves, not necessarily the most qualified.

In addition, the good jobs usually aren't advertised. You find them through networking, the right kind of cold-calling, and being at the right place at the right time. 

All that hasn't changed. Bolles labels those who open doors to the hidden marketplace "bridge people."

The way we build relationships with them is the "Parachute Way." Among the ways to reach out to them is through the LinkedIn professional network. Also, your presence on social media is your business card. As Bolles puts it, Google is your new resume. 

Because the formula remains the same, no surprise, the 2019 edition ranks 1,253 on Amazon. Here you can order it. 

What has changed is that Bolles is emphasizing the importance of knowing who you are. To find that out, he even provides a mini workbook in the front section of the guide. 

Self-knowledge, according to Bolles, is essential in navigating a labor market which keeps changing, where positions have shorter shelf lives, and that it takes longer to find a job or contract assignment. Knowing who we are gives us direction in what we go after. And prevents our getting worn out or embittered chasing after what's not the right fit.

Maybe BigLaw, despite the money and status, isn't for you. Public service, which sounds noble, could be frustrating for your level of ambitious. Funny, but you could make a go of going solo. 

Obviously, that chase probably won't result in paid work. Also, because we don't fit, we likely won't last long. And, that horrific ordeal could burn us out or even kill us. 

What used to thought of as a "career" has mutated into a continual search for paid work. Nobody should ever ditch the job-search mindset, even when enjoying a great job with great benefits. Soon enough the hunt could be back on.

Bolles doesn't use this analogy but we really are back to a hunter society. 

According the Parachute Way, hunters must know their strengths and weaknesses, likes and dislikes. Given those, they must then find out the best kinds of work situations for themselves and where.

In a sense, the Parachute Way puts those looking for work in a position of strength. Yes, we may always be hunting but the process can seem "normal," rather than a "punishment" for not doing a job right. 

The new edition has a section for the self-employed. Gig economy players should think of themselves as self-employed. 

Full Disclosure: During the late 1970s, I read in "What Color Is Your Parachute?" how requesting "informational interviews" can lead to job offers. I was struggling to make ends meet working for a non-profit.

I got up the courage to compose snail mail asking those in communications at local corporations for 10 minutes of their time for career guidance. Within three weeks, I had an offer from a global energy company. My annual salary more than doubled. Even better jobs in Corporate American opened to me. 

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers after-50, and college admission.

In addition, this blog welcomes sponsored content.

Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

 

Your Law Degree - Is It from a Roman Catholic Educational Institution?

Nine minutes ago, on The Wall Street Journal, Ian Lovett published an article about how badly the ongoing global sex abuse scandal has damaged Roman Catholicism.

That brand had been one of the most powerful and enduring. 

That was then.

Now, as with the Roger Ailes scandal at Fox, some of those whose resume is associated with the Roman Catholic Church wonder how much that will handicap a search for a job. Holders of the JD or those teaching at those universities are among them. 

When the allegations about Ailes first were emerging, a former producer at Fox asked me if he should leave that experience off his resume. His stay there had been short and he had done other consulting assignments during it to account for that time period.

He decided to remove Fox from his credentials. He received two good job offers, one in D.C. and one in Manhattan.

Of course, no one knows if leaving it on a resume would have limited his career track. 

In its prime, Roman Catholicism had been a builder.

To socialize the immigrants coming from Europe in the early 20th century, it established grade schools, private high schools, and colleges/universities.

Those institutions insulated the Irish, Italians, and Poles from the bias of White Anglo Saxon Americans (WASPs). 

The odds are that they will lose both funding and emotional support. After the Boston Globe first broke the story of clergy sexual abuse in 2002, parish schools began to close down. Likely there will be lots more of that, at every level of higher education.

At risk is the marketability of those who graduated from those institutions or who worked at them. 

Even before the latest wave of scandals - that is, the Pennsylvania one - as a communications pro I recommended Roman Catholic institutions rebrand themselves as faith-based. Doing that actually could be a public service to the degree-holders and employees, past and present.

Full disclosure: I had graduated from a Roman Catholic grade school and college. Since I later acquired other degrees from secular institutions all that could be easily "buried" - which had been smart to do. 

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers after-50, and college admission.

In addition, this blog welcomes sponsored content.

Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

 

Too-Cute Nicknames, Saints Dianne/Sheldon, The Cory Look, Run From The Questions, Rabbit, Run - "SNL" Is Back

It went into a slow, then much faster decline from too much Trump. 

Even loyalists to the satiric network tabloid stopped tuning in.

But, fortunately for those who no longer bother with "SNL," there's an online video of Matt Damon's truly funny simulation of Brett Kavanaugh's performance art before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Its signature is the rabbit-nose nervous whatever Kavanaugh couldn't shake. There are enough but not too many tears. The main prop is the calendar tracking all the activities with his buddies with odd nicknames.  Here is that online video. 

The Damon version of Kavanaugh transmits an overwrought guy who probably shouldn't have been admitted to the state bar. Never mind, confirmed for the U.S. Supreme Court. 

The meme of beer dominates. That's a severe blow to the beer industry. Likely college students watching "SNL" made the decision to switch to cheap wine.

That returns them to the counterculture years.

Back then at the free (propaganda-filled) outdoor concerts we all had bottles of 99-cent Boone's Farm sweet flavored wines, such as apple. After all, we grew up on Coca-Puffs cereal. And, you bet, we wouldn't have been seen with beer. We had been to Europe where we learned to discern wines. 

Good news for nostalgia buffs: Boone's Farm, in sweet flavors, can be ordered online from Walmart. Inflation has galloped since the end of the 1960s, though. A bottle will set you back $3.33. Click here and return to the final days before we had to knock off all that fun and go to work. Even then there were student loans to pay off. 

A clever retirement community in the Hudson Valley, New York, could organize a special event, serving Boone's Apple Blossom and having the talented musicians there lead a sing-along of "Puff The Magic Dragon." Yes, I can be hired to live-tweet/live-blog the event. 

Meanwhile, back at "SNL," no one got all the hook.

Democrat Saint - Dianne Feinstein - was alluded to as one of the oldest white folks in the Senate.

And the Democrat who brought the nation state-level class action public nuisance lead paint litigation - Sheldon Whitehouse - looked like a nerd trying to look cool.

His early-adopter advocacy for children with lead in their blood also qualifies him for sainthood.

Now that the lead issue returned via California, Whitehouse should re-promote his commitment to wiping out that health hazard. Among the supposed "bad guys" are Sherwin-Williams, convicted in the bench trial of "Santa Clara v. Arco."

Go after 'em, Saint Sheldon. Along the way you might catch the Whitehouse in 2020. Sure, I will volunteer in your campaign. (In 2005-2006, I had blogged the second run of the lead paint litigation in your home state of Rhode Island. The hotels, restaurants, and parking lots made out like bandits.)

Let's just hope that "SNL" knows when to let go of the Kavanaugh fun. Humor, like everything else in a digital era, has only a moment in time. 

There are myriad other topics to deride.

At the top of the list are those elite prep schools in New England rural areas where both professors and administrators dipped into the pool of youth for sexual frolics. The victims didn't rat. Not at the time. Now they have hired high-priced law firms to gnaw at the reputations of those who were No Mr. Chips. 

Guess, way back then, they were afraid the predators would retaliate with bad grades and lousy recommendations. That would have been the end of their careers proudly leading the nation's courts, BigLaw firms, Congress, Fortune50, and fine research universities.

Full Disclosure: From the hood, I went to public high school. Since I had no advantage I had no reason to put up with exploitation. Kavanaugh and all his buddies with those too-cute nicknames would have known to steer clear of me. Yes, they would have smelled a rat. 

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers after-50, and college admission.

In addition, this blog welcomes sponsored content.

Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

 

Safe Bet: No Job Offers Endorsing a Beer Brand for Brett Kavanaugh

She said. Then he said.

After a week, the FBI might be able to share with members of the U.S. Senate data and sworn statements which support some of the contentions or defenses. In journalism, we are trained to have at least two sources before going public.

So, right now, we know nothing. The great emotion which has gripped the nation essentially is based on speculation.

The exception might be that it is a safe bet to assume this: No beer company, at least one which values its branding, will make a job offer to Brett Kavanaugh to promote its product. Repeatedly during his sworn statement in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee he praised beer.

However, the tone and content were, well, brittle. The persona was nowhere near a Harrison Ford or David Muir type we love explaining how he enjoys the simple pleasure of a beer. Or, on the female side, the over-90 Betty White kind of phenomenon attributing longevity to X brand of beer. 

Actually, in his seeming belligerence and lawyerly way of not directly answering questions, Kavanaugh might have delivered a setback to how the nation perceives beer-drinking. 

Likely ad agencies are already factoring that in for their clients' SuperBowl ads.

Full Disclosure: I had been a barmaid on Calle de San Francisco in Barcelona, Spain. Human beings connect with the label on their drink.

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers after-50, and college admission.

In addition, this blog welcomes paid sponsored content.

Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

 

Amy Chau, Jed Rubenfeld - Is Yale Law School Power Mafia About to Be Whacked?

Amy Chau aka Tiger Mom and her husband Jed Rubenfeld have had extreme power at Yale Law School.

Now, in almost Shakespearean fashion, both seem destined to be brutally stripped of that power - and elite branding. Framed in less genteel terms, they are a Mafia wife and husband who seem to be on the verge of being whacked.

As The Guardian reports, Chua has been fingered for advising Yale Law female students applying for clerkships with Brett Kavanaugh to "look" a certain way. She even requested that they send her photos of how they planned to dress for the interview. Some students found that so distasteful, even before the #MeToo era, that they decided against continuing with the application. 

Chua is a major supporter of Kavanaugh who is currently in the soup because of allegations of sexual misconduct in his high school days. Chau's advice opens the door to suspicions that, much more recently, he behaved in odd ways when it came to female clerks. 

That Chua would give such recommendations has come back to haunt her. The story is all over the legal world. This semester she is absent from Yale Law School and hospitalized. The reason given is a health problem. Of course, since the members of the media have made her a negative part of the Kavanaugh saga some will likely dig for more information about this absence. 

There is also the other half of this power couple - Jed Rubenfeld. As Elie Mystal reports in Abovethelaw, there is an internal investigation taking place at Yale Law School about alleged inappropriate behavior, particularly with female students. It is being conducted by third party Jenn Dennis. The suspicions Mystal cites are, well, shocking. 

If these two outsized players are routed from their prestigious positions at Yale Law School, some clever lawyer with a creative bent could put together a two-act play on their rise and fall. Everyone along the Northeast Corridor would pay a king's ransom for a ticket. 

It was in Shakespeare's history play Henry IV, Part 2 that we hear the line: Uneasy lies the head that wears the crown. 

Meanwhile, the Kavanaugh chaos has thrown shade on the inner workings of Yale Law School. Will a rogue group in Congress demand an investigation of its policies and procedures? And, as a result, will a Yale Law degree lose a lot of its value. Of course, the rankers at U.S. News & World Report might take note of all this. 

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers after-50, and college admission. Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

 

 

 

Age Discrimination in Employment Act - Does It Cover Hiring Process?

"The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit … is weighing the scope of the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act … Common employment practices such as campus recruiting and experience caps would be exposed to extensive litigation if job applicants are allowed to hold employers liable for age discrimination, a management-side lawyer argued." Erin Mulvaney, National Law Journal, September 6, 2018. Here is the article.

Traditionally, the legal mindset about ageism in the workplace has been focused on all the versions of termination.

A recent interesting lawsuit has been "Mullaugh v. JPMorgan." The estate of broker Michael A. Lorig contends forced retirement caused him to commit suicide. JPMorgan is accused of wrongful death.  Here is Bloomberg's coverage.

Now, the shift is to alleged discrimination in recruitment.

The legal spotlight has been cast on the issue by the litigation filed by Dale Kleber. Represented by AARP Foundation lawyer Dara Smith, Kleber contends he was denied an in-house lawyer position at CareFusion, at age 58, because of an experience cap.

That was seven years. Kleber has more than that. 

It is important to note that the plaintiff Kleber seems to be attempting to keep this review by the Seventh Circuit limited. Another issue has been campus recruiting, as presented in a class action lawsuit against PwC . Here Bloomberg covers "Rabin v. PwC." The defendant got the class action status shot down but that lawsuit isn't dead yet. Likely, more will sprout up.

Kleber's attorney Smith noted that campus recruiting would not be outlawed. In the PwC lawsuit, the plaintiff class claimed that the large accounting firm primarily recruited through interviewing on college campuses. That tended to prevent those over-40 from entering the formal recruitment process. 

However, the experience cap is, in itself, a major issue. In fact, I perceive it as bigger than campus recruiting.

In my coaching those over-50, most of those "between jobs" already understand that they have to downsize their experience.

Lots of experience can not only make them come across in the resume as "old."

It can render them unmarketable. For any number of reasons myriad employers back away from applicants with more than several years experience. Those reasons range from assuming the compensation will have to be high to fear they will bolt when more suitable work becomes available. Also, let's face it, America is tilted toward youth-everything. 

That downsizing can be done in a number of legal and ethical ways.

For example, the resume can be restricted to full-time employment, gig contracting, and self-employment in the last seven years.

Also, the nature of the experience can be reconfigured. What had been known as "ghostwriting" can now be identified as "social media content-provider." The applicant had only been focused on the latter for three years. 

Here is my new book, free to download, on how to land, hold, and move on to better work, despite aging  Download Outwitting ageism. The legal system moves slowly. Meanwhile, seasoned professionals have to pay their bills through working. 

Complimentary initial consultation for coaching. After that, sliding scale fees. Please set up an appointment through janegenova374@gmail.com. 

When It's Not Wise to Think/Act Like a Lawyer

Is the economic boom only for youth to share in?

Could be.

Despite the great job creation statistics and the record low unemployment rate, the LA Times tells the tale of what is happening to workers who simply get older.

Essentially it's a story of downward mobility in the type of work available to them and the compensation.

Those such as Tom Middleton bump into the realities that it takes them longer than younger workers to land work - 37 weeks versus 25.

And after age 60, despite education (he has a master's degree), earnings go down for those who are employed full time (Source: Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta).

Until he was in his late 50s, Middleton was a software engineer. Now, 66, he drives a bus for about half what he used to earn. 

Of course, as lawyers worth their salt will tell the older workers, ageism may be part of this but is difficult to prove. So, for those aging professionals who are determined to continue earning income, it's wise to just shake off the bias experience and keep hunting for employment.  

One bright spot is that there may be less discrimination or none at all for gig assignments and for many telecommunications ones. Here is my new book, free to click on and read, on that  Download Outwitting ageism.

Examples include the temporary agency which hires investment communications experts at the market rate in an age-neutral way. 

In addition, given digital everything, more employers are conducting interviews for telecommuting jobs entirely online, with the actual interview thrown in. There is no in-person screening or SKYPE video interview. Of course, the applicant has to sense what answers the employers want in their interviews. Usually the right answer represents a combination of honoring company policy and struggling to excel in customer services. 

In general, what older workers have to have as a mantra is the Winston Churchill ethos: Never give up. Also, although academic degrees might not get them anywhere in full-time employment, career-oriented certifications can.

One 58-year-old man I coached bounced around after being laid off from middle management.

Finally, he decided to become licensed and certified in long distance driving. The training lasted about two months. He took out a $7,000 loan to finance it. Free tuition training was available if he had been willing to agree to work for two years for a certain company. 

Before he had completed training, he had several interviews - and offers. His age was irrelevant. The demand for manpower is high in the field. During the first year out there on the road drivers earn about $27 an hour. 

Another man I coached trained to become certified in tax preparation. He leveraged that credential into doing marketing communications on a contract basis for corporations in that niche.

Free initial consultation for those over-50 who are having difficulty with their careers. Contact janegenova374@gmail.com.

Takeaway: Shake off preoccupation with ageism. Instead figure out where the work is. The old adage is on the money: A job leads to a better job. Not working means continuing to not work. 

Attention is the currency of the 21^st century. Jane Genova helps you get it for products, services, points of view, causes, branding, careers, and college admission. Free consultation janegenova374@gmail.com

Micro-Targeted Help-Wanted Ads & Other Ways Employers Allegedly Practice Age Discrimination

One way Facebook pitches itself to potential advertisers is its ability to micro-target ads.

Anyone with a Facebook page is quite aware of that way of creating value, at least for those doing the advertising.

Almost instantly after searching on the internet for an apartment that's pet friendly in Mobile, Alabama, there will pop up on our Facebook site multiple ads for apartments allowing dogs and cats in that location.

The results of micro-targeting, though, can go beyond merely annoying. On a bad day those pop-ups can drive us nuts.

Lawsuits are contending that Facebook's micro-targeting feature is allowing employers to place help-wanted ads which only reach those under-40. For others to see the ad requires clicking on another button. 

Yuki Noguchi outs this at NPR. One such piece of litigation is a complaint filed by the Communications Workers of America against Facebook, T-Mobile, and other companies. Essentially, the plaintiffs contend that companies discriminate against aging workers by preventing them from seeing the help wanted.

But, that's the tip of the iceberg on this discrimination issue. For example, a "cute" wrinkle on this is placing a help wanted requesting an intern but paying attractive compensation. The odds are that a seasoned aka older worker would not bother reading the ad. Only a younger demographic would take it seriously

There is also the recruiting practice of focusing primarily on college campuses. A major lawsuit against PwC objects to that practice.

In addition, and there is a debate if this is legal, the ad will specify a cap on experience. What many coaches for the over-50, such as myself, recommend is that job hunters reconfigure their resumes to lop off years of experience. Otherwise they won't get in the door to present themselves. The rub, of course, is that when they present themselves in-person what's palpable is how unwanted they are. I call that The Dropped-Jaw Syndrome. 

Fortunately, there are a growing number of ways to navigate around ageism in employment.

A classic example are the work opportunities in which the entire hiring process is done online, including the interview (without any one-way or two-way video), and all the tasks are done via telecommuting. Some of these pay well and even come with benefits.

Another is to re-locate from locations such as the New York Metro area, where age bias in many fields is severe, to those such as southwestern Arizona, where the median age is higher than average. 

A third is to make the shift to the gig economy. In itself, that opens the door to multiple streams of income. The older worker can be simultaneously a contract medical doctor, a freelance writer of scientific white papers, and a contract recruiter for the healthcare field. 

Here, free to click open and read, is my new book on how to continue to earn income and make progress in landing better and better work  Download Outwitting ageism.

Meanwhile, be aware that age discrimination lawsuits are difficult to prove. If the U.S. court system is dominated by a conservative mindset there likely won't be much relief from taking legal action. The burden therefore falls on each individual to figure out how to keep making a good living and maintain human dignity.

Communications Strategy/Services and Career Coaching. Special areas of expertise include professionals over-50 and students applying to degree programs in higher education.

 

Complimentary initial consultation. Sliding scale fees. Contact Jane Genova for an appointment janegenova374@gmail.com.

 

“Over-50: Outsmarting Your Comfort Zone” http://over-50.typepad.com/over-50/2018/05/outsmarting-your-comfort-zone-free-book.html

 “Over-50: The Four Monsters in the Mind” http://over-50.typepad.com/over-50/2018/04/ageism-bites-.html