This is how often young workers feel their ideas are dismissed at work
When you are the younger voice in the room, the worry is simple: will they take the idea seriously, or hear your age first?
By Maria Lee·
48% of workers ages 18 to 25 said people not their age did not value their ideas in 2024, compared with 16% of workers 65 and older. The American Psychological Association reported those shares in its 2024 Work in America survey. But the number lands in meetings, reviews and project conversations where speaking up can already feel risky.
51% were on the higher psychological safety side
The APA framed the age finding inside a broader measure of psychological safety. The report says psychological safety is a workplace climate where workers are comfortable expressing themselves and believe they can take appropriate interpersonal risks.
- Higher psychological safety51%
- Lower psychological safety49%
The APA said workers were split at the median of a seven-question psychological safety score: 51% higher and 49% lower.
On that combined score, 51% of workers experienced higher psychological safety, at or above the median. The other 49% experienced lower psychological safety. The APA describes the safer side as workers who are confident they can speak up and who know they can ask questions when unsure.
The first sentence can feel like a risk
The age split turns an abstract safety score into a sentence you may or may not say. In an age-mixed meeting, a younger worker may have the idea, the question and the evidence, then still wonder how their voice will land.
The APA wording is about people who are not your age seeing the value in your ideas. That is a conversation problem as much as a culture problem. It is close to the everyday challenge of public speaking in a diverse society, where the audience brings different ages, roles and assumptions into the room.
Why the age split feels personal
The APA’s age table runs in one clear direction. Workers ages 18 to 25 were at 48%. The reported shares then moved to 34%, 28%, 27% and finally 16% for workers ages 65 and older.
Take an employee in the 18 to 25 group joining a planning meeting. In that age band, nearly half agreed that people not their age do not see the value in their ideas. A colleague in the 65 and older group sits in a group where the reported share was 16%. The same agenda can feel different before either person speaks.
Managers reported 71% high performance
The same 2024 APA report gives another workplace confidence marker by job level. Among upper management, 71% reported high performance or productivity. Among individual contributors, the figure was 59%.
That job-level number is not the same question as age and ideas. It gives context for who may feel most able to act at work. Upper management sits at 71% on high performance or productivity, while individual contributors sit at 59%.
Every position in the idea-value split
The full reported breakdown puts the youngest workers in a different place from the oldest workers. The statement was: “People in my organization who are not my age don't see the value in my ideas.”
| Reported group | Share |
|---|---|
| Workers ages 18 to 25 | 48% |
| Next reported age group | 34% |
| Middle reported age group | 28% |
| Next older reported age group | 27% |
| Workers ages 65 and older | 16% |
Share of workers agreeing that people not their age do not see the value in their ideas
The table does not say every younger worker is ignored, or that older workers never feel dismissed. It gives a benchmark for the private worry. If you are young and you hesitate before offering an idea, you are in the reported group where that concern was most common.
The survey covered more than 2,000 workers
The APA report says the 2024 Work in America survey was conducted online in the United States from March 25 to April 3, 2024, among more than 2,000 employed adults. Percentages were reported for the applicable portion of the sample.
The psychological safety score combined 7 questions into one rating. Workers at or above the median were placed in the higher psychological safety group, at 51%. Workers below the median were placed in the lower group, at 49%.
What this means for you
If you are the younger person in the room, separate the idea from the age worry before you speak. Write the idea in one sentence. Add one reason. Add one question you want answered. That gives you a steadier opening than waiting for perfect confidence.
In the meeting, start with the work, not your permission to speak: “One risk I see is...” or “One option is...” If the room moves on, ask a direct follow-up: “Can we test that against the younger customer segment?” Your goal is not to win every room. It is to make the idea hearable.
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