[vorg]

> The one area where age discrimination should rationally favor older programmers and they still get the shaft.

The reason older workers are employed only grudgingly for vacant Cobol jobs is most of those jobs require after-hours standby support that older people generally don't want to do. Not wanting to be woken up at 3:00am anymore was why I left my last job doing such stuff. Younger workers are less likely to get a doctor's certificate saying they're no longer able to do standby work, soon after they're employed.