Twitter

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Singapore: Seniors Group Calls for Legislation Raising Re-Hiring Age to 67

According to news reports, the PAP Seniors Group (PAP.SG)—the seniors advocacy arm of the People's Action Party (PAP)—has submitted a position paper to Singapore's Ministry of Manpower, calling for legislation to increase the rehiring age for older workers from 65 to 67.

PAP.SG believes that while past legislative changes in the employment of older workers, coupled with the government grants and incentives, have helped older workers aged 55 to 64 years, he Government's plan to roll out incentives next year to coax more employers to raise the reemployement age to 67 is unlikely to be as effective as making it the law, especially in non-unionized sectors, where most workers are employed.

Sources: AsiaOne "PAP.SG calls for legislation to raise rehiring age for older workers" (November 18, 2014); Straits Times "Make it a law for firms to lift re-employment age from 65 to 67: PAP Seniors Group" (November 18, 2014)

Thursday, November 06, 2014

New Zealand: Employers Need To Balance Retaining Older Workers with Developing New Workers

According to an article from Hays, New Zealand employers must balance the nation’s aging workforce with the continued development of new entrants to the labor market if they are to remain competitive long-term. According to Jason Walker, Managing Director of Hays in New Zealand:
“Those aged 65 and over in the workforce will increase in number, however by 2029 there will be fewer people in the labour force than not.

“Given the impending shrinking of the workforce, it makes sense to retain mature age workers for as long as possible.

“But we must not do so at the expense of training and developing new entrants to the labour market. If we look to the future, in order to maintain our competitive edge we need to ensure the country has a future pipeline of talent who have the skills and experience necessary to replace our ageing workforce when they do eventually retire. Otherwise there will be a skills vacuum that will take many years and a huge amount of investment to fill."
Thus, the balance that employers need to strike between retaining highly-valued, well educated and experienced older workers, and recruiting and developing the next generation of employees. However, the ultimate goal, according to Hays, is to focus on the recruitment, development and training of staff at all levels and of all ages.

Hays further explores the topic of the aging workforce in "Mind the Age Gap," published in the Hays Journal Issue 8.

Source: Hays Press Release (November 5, 2014)

Monday, November 03, 2014

Malta: Minister Addresses Ageist Culture in Workplace at Active Aging Conference

According to press reports, Helena Dalli, Malta's Minister for Social Dialogue, Consumer Affairs and Civil Liberties, has told a conference on active aging that Malta needs to change the present attitude by creating a culture change to combat ageism, since there are increasing reports of ageism in the workplace. She noted that, while the government can pass laws, changing the culture by highlighting this issue to employers will teach society that this mentality has to change.

Among other things, Dalli encouraged the elderly to maintain an active lifestyle, within their abilities, and encouraged employers to view older workers as assets with vast experience upon which to call.

Source: Malta Today "Ageist culture in the workplace needs to change--Dalli" (October 31, 2014)

Other information: Malta Independent "Active Ageing Strategy launched" (November 25, 2013); Parliamentary Secretariat for Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Active Ageing "Welcome Active Ageing

Sunday, November 02, 2014

Taiwan: Survey Shows Older Workers Planning To Work after Retirement Age

1111 Job Bank has released a survey finding that the vast majority of Taiwan’s office workers intend to continue working after they retire. The main reasons given are financial concerns or to gain a sense of achievement. Specifically, 85.9% of those surveyed said they would still work in one form or another after retiring, with about 51% saying that they will look for part-time work, another 13% intending to start their own business, and 18% planning to devote their energy to investing and managing their wealth. An additional 3.8% said they would try to find a full-time job.

1111 Job Bank vice president Ho Chi-sheng recommended that the government should quicken its pace in establishing a comprehensive care system for senior citizens, especially in view of Taiwan’s rapidly aging population, and advised enterprises to improve their work conditions and lower hiring thresholds for middle-aged and elderly workers.

Source: Taipei Times "Taiwanese office workers hope to work in retirement" (October 29, 2014)