Let me give you a scenario that seems RIDICULOUS, but is becoming a real possibility for businesses.
The Scenario
You hire a brand-new college graduate - 22-year-old, at what seems like the peak of their health. Top of their class, phenomenal worker. The first couple of months seems amazing.
Suddenly, something changes.
They very quickly stop being a star player.
They begin to forget about important aspects of the work they are doing. They seem disoriented all the time like they don't know how they got to where they are at. Their productivity is declining quickly.
You think maybe something is happening in their personal lives, but it is impacting work too much.
You make a decision to let them go.
The Ramifications of Your Decision
You get a letter soon after. This letter is coming from a legal team. It tells you that you and your organization are being sued for discrimination against a disability that this 22-year-old has.
What is the disability they have?
Alzheimer's Disease.
Seems ridiculous, right? Alzheimer's is an "old person" disease, how can a 22-year-old have that? This seems ridiculous!
However, in China, a 19-year-old was just diagnosed with Alzheimer's.
And diseases like this are happening at younger ages.
The Larger Business Issue
Even if you aren't found guilty, there will be repercussions to your business - legal costs, bad publicity, and the costs of hiring a new employee to replace this individual.
With diseases happening at younger ages, many issues will arise.
âž¼ Shorter Employee Effective Lifespans
âž¼ More Frequent Recruitment Costs
âž¼ More Frequent Training Costs
âž¼ Lost Productivity at Younger Ages
âž¼ Harder to Track Diseases vs. Wrong Hire
âž¼ Higher Need for Good Medical Benefits
âž¼ More Employees with Major Diseases = Lower Productivity
âž¼ Larger Potential for Lost Business Knowledge
This is a short list, but these challenges are becoming more real by the year.
Each of these challenges will drive up costs for businesses.