Why is it important to have active strategies for an ageing workplace?
The global population is ageing both in general and among the population of working age.
There are two key aspects of this:
Care of the elderly and
Employment of older workers
Both of which has been research by various industry bodies and community groups around the world in recent years.
According to the European Foundation
The first effects of an ageing population are already being felt in the field of social protection, particularly on retirement pensions, but also on health.
This is questioning the future funding of social protection which is largely dependent upon the contributions of the working population. As their number grows, the role of older people in society is going to become increasingly relevant to policy, as is the justification for employing older workers.
In Europe, present demographic trends show that the next 25 years it is likely that the population aged over 60 will grow by 50% while at the same time the number of young people (0–19 years) and adults (20–59) is forecast to fall by 11% and 6% respectively.
Similar trends are expected throughout South East Asia and Australia.
Hence the important for having active strategies for ageing workplaces.
COMBATING AGE BARRIERS IN EMPLOYMENT
The retention of older workers in employment has recently become an important objective not only of labour market policies but also for social protection budgets.
Various industry reports, journals and general business papers have documented and analysed best practices in age management, both within and outside of the workplace.
These best practices looked at how to improve job opportunities and working conditions for older workers. And focused on the retention, reintegration and retraining of the older workers. It also reinforces the importance for having active strategies for ageing workplaces.
Today more and more industry groups are having to reassess their attitudes and paradigms towards older workers, some employers are constructing a positive ‘business case’ for employing this group. In general, most of these cases are built upon five points:
The prevention of skill shortages
Maximising recruitment potential
Valuing diversity in the workforce
The return on investment in human capital
Responding to demographic change and promoting.
Trade unions, in the future, may need to reconsider their support for early exit strategies.
In simplistic terms, there are emerging cases for reducing age barriers in employment on the grounds of dependency rates, pragmatism, good human resource practice, competitiveness and in the interests of social justice and fairness.
In reality, practical action in pursuit of these aims is likely to be taken only by a minority of employers and public agencies / authorities. However, two clear messages are emerging:
Failure to combat age barriers means the wasting of human resources, which is undoubtedly a risky business in the context of an ageing workforce and a highly competitive business environment.
Best practice in job recruitment and training benefits an organisation as a whole and not just older worker
The increasing proportion of people aged 50 and over in the population of working age will call for a new approach to all matters relating to the links between age, labour market and work organisation.
The critical issues in the future will be:
Working conditions,
Productivity and
Lifelong learning.
It is likely that industry groups will also need to fulfil their social and community obligations. For example, older women’s employability and their re-entry into work after some years outside paid employment will need to be taken into account (Recognition of Current Competencies) not only in terms of work organisation, but also in the social environment.
Key Conclusion
Governments should develop active labour market policies and active strategies for ageing workplaces to aid the integration of disadvantaged groups such as older workers by, for example, providing easy access to:
Lifelong learning and through the improvement of labour market services
Age-awareness training should be introduced for human resource personnel, managers and other key staff, thus supporting an environment which places a high value on older workers
Measures such as flexible hours and carer leave should be extended which recognise the caring responsibilities of some older staff
Older workers themselves should be involved in discussions about age barriers and how to overcome them
Older workers have to be prepared and take responsibility for adjusting to late career shifts, to horizontal rather than vertical mobility, and the change in seniority related wage increments that this will entail
Trade unions should include in collective agreements recruitment and training measures which rectify the disadvantages experienced by older workers
Recognising that traditional career development patterns are changing
Greater sharing of knowledge and expertise on the relationship between age and employment and the implementation of good practice should be encouraged.
