Staging value and older women workers: When 'something more' is too much

Abstract

Images of older workers are rarely used to promote products and services. It is most often young, vibrant bodies that organisations use to stage their brand ethos. Perhaps for this reason almost all studies of aesthetic labour have focused on young workers. In this paper we seek to broaden our understanding of aesthetic labour by exploring the staging value of older workers. We draw on examples from two service settings to highlight the greater agency and moral authority embodied in older women workers. We argue that the 'something more' these workers bring to their roles may be valued or rejected depending on the organization's brand ethos. © 2008, Inderscience Publishers.