With the economy slogging along, and more people competing for fewer jobs, many are concerned about whether they are at a disadvantage when competing with others. This appears to me to affect "older" workers more than most others. Many are under the perception that, because they are more experienced and typically at the top of their wage earning potential. The worry is that younger workers can work longer for less. While this might be true on occasion, I don't think it's worth worrying about, and here's why.

Folks in their 40's and 50's are truly in their prime working years. This is a time where they should be maximizing their income and capitalizing upon their experiences in their jobs. The thing is, these folks have another good 15-20 years of productive work left. As I see it, there are a number of obstacles in the way of folks who want to work for an employer rather than start their own business.

Potential employers appear to be extra cautious in hiring older workers. There is a lot of liability for employers who hire older workers. If they decide to let an older worker go, even for cause, they must take extra precautions to eliminate the threat of an age discrimination suit. Additionally, some folks perceive that older workers get short shrift because younger workers can get paid less.

Here are some suggestions:

Earlier this week, Bank of America announced that they will be laying off 30,000 workers! That's a mind boggling number to many. Also, a fourth "green-energy" company touted by President Obama has filed for bankruptcy. One of those four, Solyndra, laid off 1,100 workers AFTER receiving over $500 million dollars from taxpayers. August saw the creation of ZERO jobs. Are you discouraged yet? Should you be?

I say no, you should not be bothered by this news. At a meeting with another business owner this week, I stated that this should be looked at as a positive. Granted, I'm not Mr. Cheery-face all the time, but hey, this is opportunity here for everyone. In the area of employment and work, I seem to be learning how to look for positive things when they present themselves.

I received a question the other day regarding a gentleman who was having trouble finding work. He had been working from home at the beginning of the year and had interviewed for a position with a large company. After being offered a position, he gave his notice to his employer. Shortly after, the new company rescinded the offer because of a misdemeanor on his record regarding over-payment of unemployment benefits. He had mentioned it during his interview and was told that it wouldn't be an issue. However, after doing the background check, the company appeared to not be comfortable with the charge and declined to hire him.

Part of the challenge in answering a question such as this is not knowing more specific information. I'm uncertain as to what he was doing from home before he interviewed with the large employer, but it sounds like he has skills that are transferable to many places. However, let's just focus on the criminal record issue.

A local reporter who asks for my input to emails he receives sent me a question from a reader. Her husband was fired over a year ago from his job for a safety violation. She clearly feels that politics were involved (shocking!), He's been out of work now and wants to know how to respond to the question "Why did you leave your last job?" The following is my response. Read it and feel free to comment.

I'm sorry to hear about this gentleman's plight, but I'm not surprised. While I'm certain he's disappointed that things wound up this way, let's look at how to proceed. It is important not to beat yourself up, as this can happen to the best of us. It doesn't even have to be your fault. Many of the most successful people around have been fired. If you haven't been fired, you're probably not trying hard enough.

A recent article in the Charlotte Observer noted that there is a large gap between minority applicants and white applicants in terms of success in finding jobs as well as just the general unemployment rate. The unemployment rate in the black community today is roughly 50% higher than it is in the white community, and the Hispanic community also seems to be suffering a higher unemployment rate than the white community as well.

Is this a sign of racism? I don't think so, although it may play a case in rare situations. Older workers are struggling to find work also. Virtually every demographic group you can think of is gonna complain about their inability to find a job. The truth of the matter is that currently, the unemployment rate hovering around 9.1% nationally, and much higer in certain other areas. If you factor in the under-employment rate and those who have given up looking, the rate hovers much closer to 17%.