Fifty times over the course of a single year, Ivars hit send on his computer. Fifty curriculum vitae went out into the ether, mapping out the credentials of a 59-year-old certified civil engineer who specializes in the construction of water supply, sewage, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems. He even maintains his own private practice. Not a single employer wrote back. Not a rejection letter with a polite excuse, not an interview invite, and not even a sound.
That stark silence sits at the heart of a growing friction point over how the modern labor market handles aging professionals. Ivars eventually came to believe that the job market harbors an unwritten preference for younger candidates, leaving seasoned specialists behind. In his view, younger workers are often seen as easier to adapt, whereas experienced specialists may be more demanding and better at defending their professional viewpoints. However, as he readily acknowledges, his personal circumstances alone do not give him enough proof to deduce that companies ignored his submissions specifically because of his age.
What the State Labor Inspectorate Tracks
To find out how systemic this issue might be, LA.LV contacted the State Labor Inspectorate, known as VDI. Dainis Deigelis, the leading expert in the strategic planning and data analysis department at VDI, explained that while the agency receives reports of possible different treatment in the workplace, it does not collect separate statistics on possible discrimination specifically based on age. Nor do they have data on the ages of individuals who may have faced discrimination or different treatment.
Even absent dedicated demographic categories, figures compiled by the organization demonstrate that reports concerning potential breaches of the Labor Law—specifically regarding equal rights and the ban on disparate treatment—have risen over recent years. During 2024, the agency was notified of five potential infractions regarding Article 29 of the Labor Law along with 90 complaints concerning Article 7. In 2025, these figures were 13 and 143 reports, respectively. The climb continued through the first nine months of 2026, during which VDI received 18 reports of possible violations of Article 29 and 137 reports of violations of Article 7. Representatives of the VDI point out that these statistics cover broader complaints about disparate treatment rather than solely age bias, and they do not automatically prove that infractions occurred in every single instance.
When Equal Treatment Crosses the Line
Job seekers typically bump into these concerns long before they ever sit down for an interview. The agency points out that individuals typically reach out for guidance or submit formal grievances when prospective employers turn them down for work, judging them either too advanced in years or insufficiently seasoned for a given role. Alternatively, anxieties regarding unequal treatment may surface when personnel are laid off or nudged toward early retirement due to how old they are rather than for valid, job-related justifications.
Biases can additionally surface through unequal pay rates and the division of workplace assignments—such as when staff members receive lower compensation or lesser responsibilities on account of their age, restricting their ability to fully display their capabilities. Proving those claims, however, requires looking past general trends and auditing specific hiring decisions.
File a Lawsuit Within Three Months over Age Discrimination
For job seekers convinced that age played an illegal role in a rejection, the law provides a window of action. According to the labor authority, if a company bypasses the ban against differential treatment during recruitment and turns down an applicant strictly because of their age without any objective justification, the affected job seeker maintains the legal option to pursue litigation.
In accordance with Article 34 of the Labor Law, any legal action must be submitted within a three-month window following the receipt of the employer’s notice declining to form an employment agreement. While a candidate cannot demand that the employer hire them forcibly, they can claim compensation for damages and moral harm. For disputes bubbling up inside an established workplace, employees can contact the State Labor Inspectorate to assess possible violations of labor law.
