Opinion: Age Works Against You in Silicon Valley
Monday, 19 August 2013 | by Pat's Picks
There’s a somewhat depressing headline on the front page of the San Francisco Chronicle this morning: “30 is the New 40,” it reads, and “40 is the New Unemployed.” Columnist Andrew S. Ross says job experience doesn’t matter like it used to in Silicon Valley, a place that is dominated by youth. The fact is that young people have simpler lives, says Mark Zuckerberg. “We may not own a car. We may not have family. Simplicity in life allows you to focus on what’s important.” Like working on an app for seven days straight. Ross says it’s this attitude that’s created a situation in the Bay Area where thousands of veteran tech workers are out of a job at the same time that the industry says it has a glut of positions to fill—so many that it must recruit workers from overseas.