Bill Gates was saluted as a grand old man of computing on his 50th birthday Friday by Europe's Amicus IT employees trade union, which congratulated Gates on the "rare feat of reaching 50 and still working in the IT sector." Gates has been touring the U.K.

Amicus said more than 80 percent of IT workers in the U.K. are under 45. The trade union is tackling the age issue in the U.K. It said a survey of IT workers conducted by the U.K. Labour Research Department for Amicus found that 71 percent of the respondents think their employers treat people less favorably according to age.

"Talent and experience is being lost because of managers' stereotypical views -- such as younger workers may be unreliable, or older workers find it difficult to gain new skills," said Amicus national officer Peter Skyte in a statement. "Amicus would like to wish Bill Gates a happy 50th birthday. We are calling on IT employers to recognize the skills and abilities of all their employees regardless of age."

The union said it was sending the Microsoft chief a personalized birthday card.