United Kingdom: Report Finds Older People Want to Work or Start Businesses

According to a report commissioned by PRIME and written by the economist Christopher Smallwood, some 800,000 people in the United Kingdom between 50 and state pension age are currently inactive but want to work. The report--"Improving Employment Prospects for the Over 50s"--also finds that the majority of new businesses are created by people in their 40s and 50s and that Companies started by older people have a 70% chance of surviving the first five years, compared with only 28% for younger people.

“It is worth putting real money behind a drive to re-employ economically inactive over-50s”, says the report’s author Christopher Smallwood.

“In order to reintroduce them to the workforce, two things are needed: (1) widespread changes in employers’ practices relating to training, retention and recruitment, and (2) a more proactive approach from Government agencies to help people back to work, particularly in the area of self-employment.”

The report says that while there are still a greater number of complaints about age discrimination in the workplace than about any other form of discrimination, a change in employer attitudes and practices of employers, together with a greater focus on the possibilities for self-employment, would do more than additional legislation.

An executive summary of the report is also available.

Source: PRIME Business Club News Release (January 14, 2008)