‘I feel invisible’: over-50s reveal harsh realities of trying to get a job

Some over-50s have sent off hundreds of job applications but have had little success. Photograph: MoMo Productions/Getty Images

Hundreds of job applications, exhausting searches and relentless rejection – the experience of attempting to get back into the workforce after losing their jobs in their 50s and 60s has proved an ordeal for some Britons.

For some, those efforts prove fruitless and lead jobseekers to reluctantly take early retirement. Others may have to rely on benefits to pay the bills while they continue to job hunt.