IBM was able to manufacture the "other factor" that it needed.
This is a well-known trick to older workers, it's called "suddenly stupid." Someone who's risen to become an accomplished expert, someone who knows the history of a place and has gotten decent performance reviews all along, suddenly gets a bad review out of the blue.
Someone's work conditions are changed, in ways that cause stress and make mistakes more likely.
Habits or mistakes that are ignored or treated lightly in younger workers are made into a federal case for the older worker.
And if that's not enough, the management can simply make stuff up. Even when the employee can prove that a statement is fictitious or exaggerated, or unfair, good luck getting the review revised.
Older workers were asking for training that was being given to others - and refused.
Older workers were told their positions were being eliminated but they could apply for other IBM openings. But it got leaked back to some that managers were told not to hire such people.
Terms like "railroading" and "entrapment" are not too strong for many of the situations that I saw being reported on discussion boards for IBMers.
Originally posted by @10uRYiMv-1okh.