Is anyone really shocked?
One of the reasons forums like this exist is because of this kind of policy.
Few of us may have been pushed out because of age but I bet a lot of us wondered if they would look for a reason to get rid of the older people.
One thing is that older workers aren't brown-nosing like they might have earlier in their careers.
Younger workers eager to make their mark will stay in the office longer, just to signal that they will endure more BS, if nothing else. They will be cheerleaders for the boss and management and new corporate initiatives.
When the company rolls out some new mission statement or something they're signaling to the public about some new thing about the corporate culture, the older, wiser BS-weary workers who've seen this all before will be cool about it, if not overtly rolling their eyes.
But the younger ones will internalize the lingo and show management how grand this new thing is.
From management's POV, they see older workers who've made a lot of money and other compensation over the years versus younger workers who start out at a lower salary who seem more enthusiastic and wide-eyed.
Of course this contrast is even more pronounced if management has more younger personnel, who are closer in age to the new recruits than the graybeards.
They will deny it but nobody is under illusions. And these days, there's overt hostility from millennials against baby boomers. Some young politicians and political activists have said baby boomers should get out of the way so they can take over.
In the workplace, they see all these deductions from their paychecks, the first time they're making any real money. There's huge cynicisms from those under 40 that they will ever collect SSI or Medicare benefits by the time they're eligible.
So they see people at or within 10 years of SSI or Medicare and there's resentment there as well.
The generational war will only become more pronounced over the next 10-20 years. Age discrimination will only increase when those now under 30 become decision makers in the next couple of decades.
You nailed it exactly!