Layoffs can happen at any time in today’s job market. Older workers may have a more difficult and lonely recovery. Professionals over 40 have an even harder time finding new opportunities in the competitive job market of today.
In the midst of this uncertainty, Damon Duncan, a 49-year-old former sales engineer, reveals his story of survival after being laid off.
From a six-figure salary to entry-level cold calls
Duncan never imagined he would find himself cold-calling strangers for a fraction of what he used to earn. A veteran of the technical sales world, Duncan had built a 24-year career as a sales engineer, solutions architect, and account executive, making a base salary of $148,000 at his peak.
But that all changed in 2023, when his company went through a merger and laid him off. A second layoff followed in August 2024 after a short-term role, and the once-steady career he had built began to unravel.
Duncan applied to hundreds of roles, customised his résumé, and reached out across his network. He even secured one job offer, only for it to be rescinded due to company restructuring.
Eventually, in late 2024, Duncan took a role far beneath his experience level: an entry-level sales job at a consulting firm with a $52,000 salary.
“I’m working alongside people who are just out of college,” he said to Business Insider. “They talk about their ‘first big boy job,’ and I’m sitting there with 24 years in the industry just trying to make ends meet,” he added.
Financial fallout
Duncan’s family was immediately and painfully impacted by the change in income. They couldn’t go on vacations, services were cancelled, and he was now solely responsible for minor home repairs. “I used to be able to hire help,” Duncan said. “Now I spend my weekends fixing staircases, replacing fixtures, and working on the cars, just to save money,” he told to Business Insider.
Their daughter’s plans for college were also impacted by the family’s financial difficulties. She decided to take a gap year and enrol in a nearby tech school after they were unable to co-sign a loan because of credit problems brought on by the layoffs.
The family had to give up a third car, which made things worse and forced them to carpool frequently. Additionally, Duncan now commutes for two hours every day because his employer requires him to return to the office.
Duncan believes his age and extensive experience may be making him less attractive to employers in today’s tech-driven, youth-focused hiring environment. “They think I’m too expensive, or that I’ll leave the minute I get a better offer,” he said. “But what they don’t understand is I’m looking for a career, not just a job,” he told Business Insider.
He suspects ageism is quietly at play in many of the rejections he has faced. “We’re not sports bikes. People my age, we take time, but we’re reliable. We’ve got the wisdom, and we’re scrappy. I’m doing an entry-level job with decades of experience. That should say something,” he told Business Insider.
Now, Duncan continues to apply to two to five jobs every day, holding out hope that a company will look past his age and see his value. “I don’t need just a paycheck anymore. I need stability. I need a future,” Duncan told Business Insider.