Woman has told Q+A of sad issues of getting a job in her 50s

A Melbourne woman has shared a horrifying job interview on national television, describing how she was advised to lie about her age on her CV.

Charlotte described the shocking advise she was given as a woman in her 50s trying to find employment. Picture: Supplied/ABC

A woman has revealed on national television the horrifying reality of being an older person searching for a job in Australia.

Charlotte, describing herself as “a lady in her 50s”, told her story on Monday night’s episode of Q+A focused on Tuesday’s federal budget.

“I am finding it very difficult to get employment. No one wants to employ me unfortunately at my age,” Charlotte said.

She revealed that she was receiving Jobseeker which paid $500 a week – a number which was inclusive of her $450/week rent.

“So I’m expected to live off $50 a week,” Charlotte said.

“And I’m not unusual. It is really difficult to find a job out there if you’re a women over 50.”

Charlotte says she has to live on Jobseeker payment of $500 a week. Picture: Supplied/ABC

Charlotte then spoke of the shocking lie she had been advised to tell to secure an interview.

“I was advised to change my CV – maybe take 10 or 15 years off.”

But the tip resulted in an awful experience for the woman.

“I went for this job interview and the gentleman who was doing the interview was horrified when he saw me,” Charlotte said.

“It was so obvious.”

Charlotte’s story followed a plea from another older woman in the audience, Vanessa, for there to be more in the budget to help people like her.

Vanessa said she was looking to both politicians and the upcoming federal budget to “actually do the right thing for all older Victorians and Australians as a whole”.

Vanessa says she is the sole wage earner making it hard for her and her husband to afford the rent in Melbourne. Picture: Supplied/ABC

“I am now the sole bread winner. And to tell you with some level of certainty, there’s no way we’re able to afford a house in Australia on our own,” Vanessa said.

“What this means is into the future, there’s the big worry hanging on our heads.

“Older Australians are at the risk of more rental stress and at the same time and at worse homelessness.”

Show host, Patricia Karvelas, said “I hear these stories a lot and I think journalists hear these

stories every day.”

“Your story actually tells a really important story of people in their older years,” Ms Karvelas said after asking the audience to raise their hand if the situation resonated with them.

In a Budget-focused Q+A episode, host Patricia Karvelas asked the panel “what’s it going to take” for Australians to see cost of living changes. Picture: Supplied/ABC

Charlotte is currently completing her master of counselling while also raising her 18-year-old twins.

“We have to pool our money in together,” the mother of two said.

She also said her ex-husband was “very decent” and helped the family out with their energy bills.

Karvelas then put the focus back on the panel, using the audience’s experiences to ask what it would take for Australians to see change come from the federal budget.

“I think that when we have these conversations about cost of living … we feel like sometimes … we have it in the abstract,” Karvelas said.

“But these stories are everywhere. And people like you wait for budgets or opportunities for genuine change, but it feels like it’s always incremental.

“What’s it going to take to shift the dial?”

Treasurer Jim Chalmers will hand down his fourth budget at 7.30pm on Tuesday. He has already flagged measures to help with the cost of living crisis.

Originally published as Woman has told Q+A of sad issues of getting a job in her 50s