Older workers: more measurement means more support

Jo Faragher

Ever since the default legal retirement age was abolished in 2011, employers have felt at a bit of a loss when it comes to older workers.

With age discrimination legislation firmly entrenched, they know they shouldn’t discriminate against those who would normally be approaching their final few years at work, but still find this relationship difficult to navigate.

So research from Mercer this week showing that most companies are failing to carry out checks on hiring and recruitment practices, not to mention age-friendly working practices for existing workers, is not really a surprise.

The company found that some 87% of companies did not check whether hiring managers were recruiting people older than themselves, while support for those dealing with ageing relatives was only offered by 45%.

Without a firm dateline in place, some employers have clearly chosen to simply ignore their older workforce – for fear of saying the wrong thing – rather than make an effort to engage and retain them if they choose to work for longer. Too few companies, Mercer found, analysed health and absence by age so that they could offer specific wellness programmes, for example.

As Mercer points out, by 2050, the number of people over 65 years old will triple worldwide and the number of those over 80 will quadruple. And because the ageing population is growing at a faster rate than the generation about to enter the workplace, we could be faced with severe skills shortages.

Abolishing a firm retirement age aimed to support those who want to work longer and encourage employers to do the right thing, although many employers seem to carry on as before – not offering training and development to older staff, for example, believing that they won’t be around for much longer and just want to retire. While some inevitably will want to leave at the ‘traditional’ age of 65, others may want to stay in work for a variety of reasons, from a need to earn money to top up the pension pot, or simply because they enjoy the challenge.

This research shows that there is clearly still more to be done to support our ageing workforce – not just by complying with a set of rules, but by creating an inclusive culture where employees of all ages feel they have a role to play in the future of the organisation.