Commentary: Youthfulness and the Older Worker

Judith Timson writes in the Globe and Mail that for older workers wanting to be professionally wanted in a youth-obsessed culture have apparently found a solution--"We're not young any more, we're 'youthful.'"

Whenever I read the word "youthful" applied to anyone over 40, as it is frequently these days, I ask myself: Is this relentless need to redefine the middle-aged as young -- or, more importantly, not old -- a desperate bid by the boomers to hold on to the spotlight at all costs?

Or have we successfully reframed the idea of aging and, with all sorts of new cosmetic, spiritual and physical avenues, simply set the bar higher for how we are all supposed to look and feel?

Referring to the "countless articles and websites offering advice to midlife job seekers worried about appearing old," she says many are absurdly obvious, but she also senses that women in today's work force still have to worry more about aging than men do. However, she suggests that looking good (not necessarily youthful) and looking fit are especially important for older workers looking to get ahead. On the other side, there are certain behaviours that signal "older worker:" "Going to a business event, for example, and reminiscing about the past the whole time -- not a good thing. A few old combat stories are fine but then go ask younger colleagues what stirs their interests in your field these days. You have to stay curious to stay youthful."

Source: "Youthful is as youthful does" The Globe and Mail (February 1, 2006)

Asia: University of Chicago Executive MBA Program Attracts Older Ages

Writing in The Korea Times, Chung Ah-young reports on an executive MBA (EMBA) program that will help seniors successfully continue developing their business skills over their long careers in an aging society. According to the article, "Beth Bader, managing director of the EMBA Asia program of Graduate School of Business of the University of Chicago in the United States, said getting an adult education and continued investment in oneself, through the EMBA course, are crucial in almost any field, for successful long-term careers."

``People begin to realize they don’t want to spend their whole or half their life just declining as they are getting older. In a sense, they can reinvent themselves, if they want to do that. Or they can make a very significant jump in their abilities and flexibilities in the very specialized business program,’’ Bader said.

She stressed that in societies with aging populations, people hope to work longer.

``That’s why I predict more demands for the EMBA course for older ages and more mature-aged students here in Korea and other aging countries. Particularly, business in Korea has been much more mature. People are going to need to work a lot longer than they have done in the past. I think it has happened already in the United States,’’ she said.

Source: "Executive MBA Program Targets Seniors" The Korea Times (February 1, 2006)

Microsoft Launches 21st-Century Skills Initiative for European Workers, Including Older Workers

Microsoft Corp. has announced a 21st Century Skills for Employability initiative in Europe. This is part of a European Alliance on Skills for Employability, which is providing access to skills training, content provision, and certification for underserved communities, including older workers. The alliance, with other companies such as Cisco Systems, is being created to help better coordinate industry and community efforts to improve the employability prospects of young unemployed people, people with disabilities and older workers. The alliance will work to provide technology access and ICT training to 20 million people in the next five years. According to Günter Verheugen, vice president of the European Commission in charge of Enterprise and Industry, “[r]aising employment is the most effective way to generate growth and promote social inclusion. The challenges posed by an aging population make the modernization of social protection systems and the promotion of a life-cycle approach to work all the more important.”

Source: Press Release Microsoft (January 31, 2006)

Ireland: Needs To Mobilize Older People into Workforce

In its latest report in a series of 21 OECD country reports that are intended to fill the knowledge gap of what are the main barriers to employment for older workers, an assessment of the adequacy and effectiveness of existing measures to overcome these barriers, and a set of policy recommendations for further action by the public authorities and social partners, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development has released its Ageing and Employment Policies: Ireland. According to the report, Ireland will need to mobilise more fully the potential labour resources of older people in order to sustain its record of strong economic growth and healthy public finances. Therefore, it should: strengthen work incentives through pension and welfare reform; promote an age-friendly environment in firms; expand training opportunities; and provide more assistance to older job seekers. The full report can be browsed here or purchased here.

Source: News Release OECD (January 31, 2006)

New York Employers Not Rushing To Hire Older Workers

Joy Davia, writing for the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle, reports that while New York area businesses will be losing workers full of experience and institutional knowledge, but won't have nearly enough Generation X-ers and Y-ers to replace them, "[m]ost businesses are aware of the problem but are not preparing for such a scenario, according to a recent upstate New York study by the AARP. They're not actively trying to attract and keep older workers or getting experienced workers to mentor younger cohorts, among other moves."

It might be hard for businesses to take a potential worker shortage seriously, especially if they're not already having trouble finding skilled employees. In fact, massive downsizings by local companies have left an abundance of people searching for jobs. "Change happens so rapidly," said Matthew Hurlbutt, executive director of RochesterWorks. "It might be hard for a business to look at an issue in 2010 and say they should start preparing for this now."

Davia writes that two of the most important things for employers to consider are making jobs attractive for older workers and capturing their knowledge. For example, the YMCA of Greater Rochester offers flexible hours — maybe part time or job-sharing — and benefits, including a new initiative that offers part timers health insurance. And, on the other side, Strong Memorial Hospital has a new mentoring program designed to get more nurses into one of its toughest fields; mentoring, according to Davia is hailed by experts as a great way to prepare for the upcoming swell of boomer retirements.

Source: "Older workers hold key to easing staffing woes" Rochester Democrat & Chronicle (January 29, 2006)

Immigration Not Altering Older Worker Demographics in U.S.

In providing a detailed picture of both the numbers and the socio-economic status of immigrants from U.S. Census Bureau data that shows that the nation's foreign-born or immigrant population (legal and illegal) reached a new record of more than 35 million in March of 2005, Steven A. Camarota, Director of Research at the Center for Immigration Studies, reports that recent immigration has had no significant impact on the nation's age structure--"[w]ithout the 7.9 million post-2000 immigrants, the average age in America would be virtually unchanged at 36 years."

It could be argued that the benefit to the age structure might take more than just five years of high immigration. In a recent reported we examined the impact of immigration on the aging of American society as well as on the Social Security system. Consistent with other research, we found that immigration has only a very small impact on the problem of an aging society now and in the future. While immigrants do tend to arrive relatively young, and have more children than natives, immigrants age just like everyone else, and the differences with natives are not large enough to fundamentally alter the nation's age structure. After looking at the impact of different levels of immigration over the next century, a Census Bureau report stated in 2000 that immigration is a "highly inefficient" means for increasing the percentage of the population that is of working age in the long-run.

Source: "Immigrants At Mid-Decade: A Snapshot Of America's Foreign-Born Population In 2005" Center for Immigration Studies (December 2005)

Employers Not Facing Up to Aging Workforce: Survey Results

The Aging of the U.S. Workforce: Employer Challenges and Responses, a survey conducted by Ernst & Young LLP, ExecuNet Inc., and the Human Capital Institute, reveals that, although corporate America foresees a significant workforce shortage as boomers retire, it is not dealing with the issue at present and may be underestimating the strategic challenges ahead. According to the survey of senior human resources executives, a little more than half of them agreed that the aging workforce is an issue that must be addressed. The survey illustrated that while employers are putting off tackling the issue of an aging workforce, an overwhelming 90% said they are committed to putting formal retention programs in place in the future. Of the 30% who have identified where business wisdom resides, only 67% have formal processes in place to transmit that business wisdom to the next generation.

Source: News Release PR Newswire (January 26, 2006)

Aging Workforce Helps Drive State Government Outsourcing

State and local government outsourcing expenditures on information technology (IT) are expected to grow from $10 billion in fiscal year 2005 to nearly $18 billion by fiscal year 2010 (FY10), according to a report released by INPUT. Despite many government officials' claims, outdated system infrastructures and an aging workforce will remain major factors forcing the market's pronounced 75 percent growth over the next five years.

“As the economy continues a strong recovery, we expect outsourcing opportunities to increase on the state and local level,” added [James] Krouse [, manager, state & local market analysis at INPUT]. “However, system integrators should remain vigilant in researching government opportunities on a case-by-case basis. The loss of seasoned government workers will affect nearly all state & local agencies. While this will be a significant stimulus for outsourcing contract decisions, ongoing maintenance of outdated legacy systems will provide more definite targets for outsourcing contract opportunities.”

Source: Press Release INPUT (January 23, 2006)

Europe: Aging Workforce Issues Part of Annual EU Labor Progress Report

The European Commission has published "Time to Move Up A Gear" The European Commission's 2006 Annual Progress Report on Growth and Jobs to reinforce momentum and force the pace of delivery. The report, and its separate national evaluations, provides an analysis of the 25 new National Reform Programmes submitted by Member States, identifies the strengths in different programmes with a view to promoting the exchange of good ideas, and highlights areas where there are shortcomings and proposes concrete action at EU and national level to deal with them.

In the third of the four priority action areas--employment policies to get people into work, the EU proposes that, to help increase employment rates and to finance pensions and health care for an ageing population, Member States should adopt a lifecycle approach to employment, with people of all ages offered the support they need. In addition, it says "active ageing" should be implemented, with more training for those over 45, financial incentives for prolonging working lives and use of part-time work.

Source: News Release European Commission (January 25, 2006)

Global: Employers and Nations Putting Retired Back to Work

In an article for Newsweek international, Stefan Theil writes that "many of the rich world's notions about old age are dying. While the streamlining effects of international competition are focusing attention on the need to create and keep good jobs, those fears will eventually give way to worries about the growing shortage of young workers. One unavoidable solution: putting older people back to work, whether they like it or not." Writing on the eve of the 36th World Economic Forum, Theil notes that "the global labor market won't wait for politicians or protesters to come around" and provides a number of examples of corporate responses:

DaimlerChrysler, whose share of over-45 workers will have risen from 41 percent in 2002 to 68 percent in 2011, has set up an Aging Workers Task Force, made up of human-resources managers and health counselors whose main job is to make sure that employees stay productive longer. Personnel services like Swiss-based Adecco have introduced "demographic fitness tests" for their clients to help them judge whether they have the tools in place to attract and productively employ qualified older workers. "Age-ism in the workplace is a danger to corporate productivity," warns Adecco, which recommends replacing sudden retirement with a flexible system allowing workers to work part time into their late 60s or beyond.

The Ford Motor Co. expects that the number of workers older than 50 will double in its European plants by 2008, and has set up an "early-warning system" to deal with staff-aging issues. "With the coming shortage of young, skilled staff, we will have to live with our aging employees," says Erich Knulle, health services director and demographics point man at Ford's European headquarters in Cologne, Germany.

Among the national responses discussed, Thiel draws attention to Finland where, when recession hit in the early 1990s, only 20% of Finns between the ages of 60 and 64 were working. Since then Finland has introduced "bonus pensions" for people working until 68, giving them a financial incentive to continue working—and paying taxes.

Source: "The New Old Age" Newsweek: International Edition (January 30, 2006)

South Korea: New Labor Statistics Show Aging of Workforce

According to an article by Kim Sung-jin in The Korea Times, Korea's The National Statistical Office (NSO) said on January 23 that the number of 40-49 year old workers outstripped the working population aged between 30 and 39 years olds for the first time ever.

"The age of the newly employed in Korea’s manufacturing industry averaged 37.6 years in 2004 and would grow to 50 years by 2030 due to the rapidly aging trend and low birthrate of the Korean society," said LG Economic Research Institute (LGERI) vice president and economy research division chief Oh Moon-suk.

"Such trends call for urgent research into ways to raise the productivity of elderly citizens to tackle the declining potential economic growth rate problem in the short-term, and reinvigorate the birthrate to cope with the problem in the long-term," Oh said.

LGERI has suggested that adoption of a wage peak system and extending the retirement age could help the elderly from remaining economically inactive.

Source: "40-Somethings Emerge as Key Workforce" The Korea Times (January 23, 2006)

Commentary: Europe Can Age Gracefully If Reforms Implemented Now

Writing in Business Week, Natascha Gewaltig says that Europe's graying population will put economic pressure on the euro zone soon, but that what is needed is the political will to implement reforms now. "The share of the working-age population (15 to 64) will fall from around 66.9% in 2004 to just 56% in 2050. At the same time, the share of the population older than 65 will increase to 30% from 17%." One key issue will be female labor participation rates increase, which would at least partially offset the effect of a decline in labor supply; however, that will not be enough according to Gewaltig, so that immigration will also have to play an increasingly important role. In addition,

relatively favorable demographic developments over the next 4 to 5 years mean the period until 2011 is a window of opportunity for governments to prepare their pension systems and labor markets for the upcoming challenges. Radical changes and reforms of the PAYG pension schemes in key countries will be necessary. Despite the life-expectancy increase, the entry level for pension schemes has remained widely unchanged -- but this will have to be increased for the plans to remain sustainable.

Nevertheless, the time spent in retirement is likely to increase in the long run, all else being equal, and the change in dependency ratios will make the current PAYG system unsustainable. Pension levels will have to be lowered, and private-pension provisions will need to become more important.

Source: "How Europe Can Age Gracefully" Business Week (January 23, 2006)

Global Pension Systems Need To Adapt to Aging Populations

Raymond Torres, a labor analyst with the international Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), spoke January 19 at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington and told the audience that countries should adjust their pension and employment systems to adapt to aging populations and older workers. According to an article by Kathryn McConnell, Washington File Staff Writer for the Department of State, Torres said that if significant changes are not made in coming years, economic growth in countries could slow profoundly, as longer-living pensioners tap into retirement benefits and the proportion of younger workers who pay into countries' supportive tax bases grows smaller. Among other things, improved incentives for retaining workers longer could include raising the pension age, limiting tax advantages for people in private pension schemes for taking early retirement and ensuring that formal retirement plans and other welfare benefits are not used as pathways to early retirement.

Source: Washington File U.S. Department of State's Bureau of International Information Programs (January 19, 2006)

Massachusetts: Boomers Poised To Redefine Retirement

Massachusetts Institute for a New Commonwealth, known as MassInc, has issued a report "A Generation in Transition: A Survey of Bay State Baby Boomers" in partnership with Princeton Survey Research Associates Intl. finding that, above all, boomers appear poised to redefine retirement. From a survey of over 1,000 boomers, MassInc reports that boomers expect to reverse the trend toward earlier withdrawal from the labor force by delaying their retirement and continuing to work at least parttime even after they retire. Boomers’ views about their retirement years are shaped by their finances today, which are not as strong as is often believed--excluding the equity in their homes, 30% have saved less than $50,000 for retirement, including 13% who have no retirement savings at all. Among those boomers who are planning to work after they retire, at least 39% expect to work out of financial necessity, not by choice.

In addition to the report, a roundtable discussion of it is available from WGBH.

Source: Press Release MassInc (November 2005)

Aging Workforce Issues Prominent in Creating New Global Workforce Forum

In response to the growing need for an international forum for discussion of workforce strategies, the Boston College Center for Work & Family has announced the launch of a Global Workforce Roundtable, a network comprised of human resources professionals from leading multinational organizations. Aiming towards a September inaugural summit in London, the Roundtable is designed to tackle "global concerns such as an aging workforce coupled with dwindling fertility rates." Participation is by invitation only, and participants "will share information and strategies regarding issues ranging from flex time and telecommuting to attraction and retention of talented personnel and aging workforce across the U.S., Europe and Asia Pacific regions."

Source: Press Release Boston College Center for Work & Family (January 17, 2006)

United Kingdom: Older Workers Have Smaller Social Circle, Inhibiting Finding Jobs

A report by Napier's Employment Research Institute (ERI) says that by having a large circle of family, friends, and acquaintances in employment a person is more likely to find or be in work than someone with very few contacts. However, unemployed people over 50 years old had smaller social circles than those in work and that many of their acquaintances were also unemployed which reduced their own chances of finding work.

According to the report--The Social Networks of Older Workers, people over 50 generally had fewer qualifications and skills than the under 50s and were more likely to work in part-time, non-skilled jobs. The over 50s also considered age to be a major barrier to employment. Kaberi Gayen, Research Associate, ERI, Napier University, said: "This research confirms the commonly-held view that older people find it harder to obtain work or change jobs." The research was carried out under the EQUAL initiative, an EU programme designed to combat discrimination and exclusion.

While recommending more research to validate its results over a broader area, the report suggests that more support should be given to unemployed people over 50, through greater development of social networks and skills by employment agencies; more work placements to enable people to widen their skills and social networks; and by increasing the number of volunteering opportunities.

Source: Press Release Napier University Employment Research Institute (January 17, 2006)

Iowa: Legislation Advances To Repeal Income Tax on Pensions and Social Security

The Iowa House Ways and Means Committee voted to eliminate the personal income tax on pension and social security benefits. The legislation, House Study Bill 502, is a five-year phase-out of the state tax on both pensions and Social Security benefits. The phase-out in HSB 502 begins in calendar year 2007. According to Committee Chairman Jamie Van Fossen (R-Davenport), Iowa is one of only 15 states that still taxes social security benefits, while most states that impose an income tax exempt at least part of pension income from taxable income; only three states fully exempt all public and private pensions from taxation.

Source: Newletter Jamie Van Fossen's Week in Review (January 13, 2006) Check this link later

For Governor Tom Vilsack 's perspective, see Quad City Times in which it is reported that he acknowledged that taxing retirement income is an issue in border communities such as the Quad-City area, but believes retirees leave the state because of the weather, not the tax climate. Nonetheless, he told reporters and editors he would be more interested if Republicans considered doing away with the ability of Iowans to deduct federal taxes from their state tax liability.

Commentary: Boosting Iowa To Entice Older Workers

Richard Doak, a columnist for the Des Moines Register, is recommending that if Iowa is going to maintain a workforce anywhere near the size of the present workforce, it will need a lot of people to decide to keep working beyond traditional retirement age. In particular, state government and private-sector employers should work together to provide a lot more of the kind of jobs older workers are interested in--ones that give them a sense of giving back to the community, and generally with less stress and probably less than full-time hours. Thus, he suggests Iowa needs things such as:

• Fast-track procedures in licensing and certification to allow mid-career workers to shift into rewarding fields such as social work, health care and community development.
• More jobs that offer part-time, flex hours and seasonal employment, so seniors can work but still take in their grandkids' Little League games or make a snowbird trip south.
• More housing developments, transportation, recreation and workplaces that involve less hassle, more ease of living.

Source: "Make Iowa the place to be for older workers"Des Moines Register.com (January 16, 2006)

United Kingdom: New Projections of Over-65 Workforce to 2020

The United Kingdom labor force is projected to continue growing and reach 32.1 million people in 2020, on the basis of current trends, according to an article in the January issue of Labour Market Trends. This is a 6.7% increase on the 2005 figure of 30.1 million. It is expected that the number of people remaining economically active above pension age will increase; specifically, the number of over-65s still economically active will increase from 582,000 in 2005 to 775,000 in 2020. Overall, the economic activity rate for working-age people is projected to increase from 78.5% in 2005 to 79.8% in 2020.

The most significant demographic trend affecting the labor force over the next 15 years is expected to be a 23.5% increase in the number of people aged 50 and over. This is a combined effect of the overall trend towards higher life expectancy as well as the transition of the baby boom generation to the 50 and over age group.

Source: News Release National Statistics (January 12, 2006)

Commentary: Dire Forecasts for Boomers Overstated

Julie Kosterlitz and Marilyn Werber Serafini, staff correspondents at National Journal, have opined in an article is based on a recent item in that magazine that "the graying of America may not be the fiscal disaster that the deficit hawks project. The nation may age a good deal more gracefully than advertised, thanks to American ingenuity, adaptability and an increasingly hardy group of elderly." With respect to working life, they say that baby boomers are likely to work longer than preceding cohorts and that a decades-long trend toward earlier exit from the workforce appears to have ended.

Already, some private and government programs are encouraging this trend. The Civic Ventures think tank, which hopes to inspire a movement for paid and unpaid "second careers" in social action, is planning to offer five $100,000 awards in June to people over 60 who devise new ways to tackle social problems. The seniors' group AARP is collaborating with about two dozen companies to connect Americans over 50 with jobs. IBM recently started encouraging senior workers to become math and science teachers, offering them tuition and stipends while they student teach or mentor students online.

Source: "Hold off on the boom-and-doom talk" Los Angeles Times (Janauary 16, 2006)

Singapore: Low Wage Workforce Bonuses Help Older Workers

Farah Abdul Rahim, writing for Channel NewsAsia, reports that older, low-wage workers have given a thumbs-up to the billion dollar workfare assistance proposal unveiled by the Ministerial Committee on Low-wage Workers aims to give this group of workers the leg up, with a one-off bonus and more training. While the cleaning industry was the first industry to reap the benefits of the Job Re-Creation Programme, which saw workers receive training and a new image to help boost their wages, the program's scope and depth were being extended so that low-wage workers can climb up the career ladder easily to become supervisors, better their career prospects and more importantly, bring home more pay. "The aim is to expand the programme to nearly all sectors, including building and maintenance, and new growth areas like tourism."

Source: "Older, low-wage workers welcome workfare package" Channel NewsAsia (January 12, 2006)

Sheriff Backs Down On Using Older Workers from Senior Employment Program

In December, according to an article in the Richmond (IN) Palladium-Item, the Union County commissioners agreed to participate in Experience Works, the federally-funded senior workforce program. Residents age 55 or older who have limited income and want to work are eligible, and Sheriff Steve Leverton was reported to have "said he would use the workers to serve civil paperwork ordered by the court, primarily in the evenings and weekends. Senior workers also could do prisoner transport, especially those coming to court from state prisons." However, Leverton subsequently learned that the work he had planned is considered too dangerous.

Source: "Sheriff's plans for senior help scrapped" Richmond (IN) Palladium-Item (January 12, 2006)

Companies Lose Confidence in Workers’ Ability to Save for Retirement

Hewitt Associates is reporting that, despite continued efforts to educate employees on the importance of saving for retirement, many companies do not feel workers are stepping up to the challenge. According to Hewitt's study of more than 220 large U.S. companies, only 6% are confident their employees will take accountability for their own retirement future this year, down from 12% in 2005. "To address these concerns, an increasing number of companies are implementing automated features that make retirement saving a reactive decision rather than a proactive one." Specifically, 23% are very likely to add automatic enrollment features in their 401(k) plans by the end of the year, 13% are very likely to add contribution escalation features, and 20% plan to add automatic rebalancing of 401(k) accounts.

Source: News Release Hewitt Associates (January 10, 2006)

Older Workers Less Likely To Work Under Influence of Alcohol

Workplace alcohol use and impairment directly affects an estimated 15 percent of the U.S. workforce, or 19.2 million workers, according to a recent study conducted at the University at Buffalo’s Research Institute on Addictions and reported in the current issue of the Journal of Studies on Alcohol. However, "working under the influence of alcohol or with a hangover was more prevalent among younger workers compared to older workers."

Source: News Release University at Buffalo Research Institute on Addictions (January 9, 2006)

AARP Campaigns To Repeal Social Security Offset Provision in State Unemployment Laws

According to an article by Diane E. Lewis in The Boston Globe, AARP has launched a campaign to encourage Massachusetts and eight other states to end state laws that deduct a portion of older workers' weekly Social Security payments from their unemployment benefits. According to AARP, laws in theses states, which include Rhode Island, Maine, Colorado, Ohio, Utah, Illinois, Louisiana, Minnesota, and South Dakota, cause such workers to forfeit $7.5 million per year.

"Two legislative proposals in Massachusetts could lead to a repeal. One, filed by House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones Jr., a North Reading Republican, would provide enhanced jobless benefits to laid-off older workers. A second bill, filed by Senate Minority Leader Brian Lees, a Republican representing the First Hampden and Hampshire district, would eliminate the Social Security unemployment insurance offset."

Source: "AARP hits law that cuts elders' jobless benefits" The Boston Globe (January 10, 2006)

Connecticut Manufacturers Cannot Fill Jobs--Aging Workforce A Big Factor

According to the "2005 Survey of Current and Future Manufacturing Jobs in Connecticut," conducted by the Connecticut Business & Industry Association, Connecticut manufacturers are having difficulties filling job openings because of the lack of skilled workers looking for employment with many manufacturers saying that the state’s aging workforce, combined with the inadequate skills of job candidates entering the workforce, will make the problem worse within the next five years.

The median age of manufacturing employees nationwide is 42. Connecticut’s workforce has a median age of 37.4 years, ranking it as the seventh-oldest workforce in the nation. More than three-quarters of Connecticut manufacturers say they expect up to 20 percent of their employees to retire within five years. And 94 percent expect to replace at least some of their workforce by 2010 due to employee retirements.

Source: News Release Connecticut Business & Industry Association (January 4, 2006)

IBM Changes U.S. Pension Plans Effective in 2008

IBM has announced that it has changed its U.S. defined benefit pension plans and that it plans to redesign its 401(k) savings plan, effective in January 2008. Specifically, as part of IBM's global strategy of shifting the future focus of retirement benefits toward the more predictable cost structure of a 401(k), IBM plans include:

• stopping the accrual of future benefits in the company's defined benefit pension plans, and fully preserving all retirement benefits that employees will have earned as of December 31, 2007;
• redesigning its 401(k) savings plan by giving current pension plan participants an annual company-funded contribution of as much as 10 percent of their pay;
• assisting nonexempt pension equity plan participants to save more by providing an annual special savings award of 5 percent of pay to their 401(k) savings plan;and
• ensuring 100 percent employee participation in the 401(k) savings plan by opening accounts for employees who do not contribute to the plan, and annually depositing the automatic company contribution of 1 to 4 percent of their pay directly into these employees' accounts.

Source: News Release IBM (January 5, 2006)

Switzerland: Firms look to retain their older employees

According to the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper of Zurich, research shows firms including ABB Switzerland are seeking to address an anticipated future shortage in the labour market. The Swiss Employers' Association and the Swiss organisation for the elderly, Pro Senectute, are currently working on guidelines for firms. According to the director of the employers' association, Peter Hasler, workers should be allowed to gradually reduce their working hours before retiring completely.

A spokesman for ABB Switzerland, Lukas Inderfurth, told swissinfo his company was looking at ways of improving its policy towards workers in the 50 plus bracket. "Older workers are becoming more and more important for the firm in view of the evolving demographic situation in Switzerland," Inderfurth said. A key government advisory committee warned in October that a rise in the retirement age was inevitable in the long run, and that the "dogma" of drawing a pension from 65 would have to be abandoned. The government is also in favour of pushing back the age at which workers draw pensions, and has been withdrawing incentives to early retirement.

Source: "Firms look to retain their older employees" swissinfo (January 3, 2006) in English

Manpower Inc. CEO on The Future Of The Global Workplace

Jeffrey A. Joerres, the president and CEO of Manpower, in an interview with The McKinsey Quarterly, says of the aging population that "[d]emographic issues are hard to solve because they require a partnership between government, which is only in office for a period of time, and business, which has its own quarterly issues to deal with." While he notes that France's notion of retraining—having companies set aside money for a training fund—is very proactive, retraining efforts in the United Kingdom and in Australia-—countries that have an aging problem--are further away. In addition, he notes that a majority of older workers are interested in part-time jobs—-not full-time temporary jobs: "People want to work Wednesday afternoon and Thursday morning, not for four months on a project. Getting individuals to think beyond part-time work and to take more responsibility for improving their skills will be absolutely key."

Governments can help with tax schemes, training, payroll subsidies—but, ultimately, I'm afraid there will have to be pain associated with this issue before it becomes institutionalized. Without pain, it's just too easy to keep putting it off for somebody else to solve. But it's not just demographics—you can't forget the pure talent gaps. You're going to find 40-year-olds in the same position as someone who's 60, because the 40-year-old simply lacks the skills the company needs. People can't turn on a dime and change a skill set. You can't be a machinist one day and a nurse the next when you're 60. So the demographic crunch is coming, and it will be exacerbated by the talent crunch.

Source: "The future of the global workplace: An interview with the CEO of Manpower" McKinsey Quarterly (November 2005) Free, but registration required

Attorneys Warn Employers About Discriminating Against Older Workers

Writing for the Knight Ridder Newspapers, Candace Goforth reports that as a result of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling making it easier for workers to sue for age discrimination, attorneys are "warning employers to examine their policies to make sure they aren't unwittingly discriminating against older workers and leaving themselves vulnerable to claims." According to Paul Magnus, vice president of workforce development for the nonprofit senior employment group Mature Services, discrimination isn't limited to denying jobs or promotions based on age. Organizations that fail to invest in older workers in the same way they invest in younger ones, namely through training and employee development programs, also may be guilty of discrimination.

Source: "Age bias has major legal consequences" Miami Herald (December 26, 2005)

AARP Study Debunks Myths, Shows 50+ Workers as a Solid Investment

The AARP has released a study prepared by Towers Perrin for AARP that challenges myths about workers 50 and older and shows that those employees often have productive advantages that make them far more cost-effective than is generally believed. According to the report--"The Business Case for Workers Age 50+: Planning for Tomorrow's Talent Needs in Today's Competitive Environment", there is a common business perception that 50+ workers "cost more" than younger workers, but that "the extra per-employee total compensation cost of retaining or attracting more 50+ workers ranges from negligible to three percent in key industries" and "older workers are more motivated to exceed expectations on the job than younger workers." Furthermore, in the case of hiring more older workers, "average age-based total compensation cost differences are negligible and hover around one percent per year for the four positions examined."

Source: News Release AARP (December 21, 2005)

Legislation Introduced To Foster Employment of Workers Forgoing Retirement

Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI) has introduced legislation aimed at expanding opportunities for older Americans and baby boomers to work longer if they so choose. The bill is designed to address problems faced by workers who decide to forgo retirement and businesses who seek to retain the experience of older workers and curb a major workforce drain as seventy-seven million people quickly approach retirement age. The legislation, the Older Worker Opportunity Act of 2005 (S. 1826), is co-sponsored by Senator Richard Durbin (D-IL) and would:

Establish a tax credit to employers who offer flexible or phased work to older workers and protect them from health insurance or pension loss; Extend COBRA health coverage for older workers who lose health coverage due to reduction in work hours; Provide a tax credit for the eldercare of a loved one; Improve access to employment and training services funded under the Workforce Investment Act; Create a Federal Task Force on Older Workers through the Department of Labor in order to examine additional barriers faced by older workers and develop ongoing solutions that are helpful to both businesses and older workers.

Source: News Release U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (October 8, 2005)

New Reports Offer Comprehensive Analyses of Demographics and Working Situations of Older Workers

Two new reports have been released by The Center on Aging and Work/Workplace Flexibility at Boston College and Families and Work Institute based on data from the Families and Work Institute's National Study of the Changing Workforce. The reports were released to coincide with the White House Conference on Aging, which will make recommendations to Congress and the President about issues facing the aging workforce. The first report--"Context Matters: Insights about Older Workers from the National Study of the Changing Workforce"--found that older workers are more likely to continue working when they have more control over their work hours, workplace flexibility, job autonomy and learning opportunities. The second report--"The Diverse Employment Experiences of Older Men and Women in the Workforce"--found that female workers over the age of 50 are at a distinct disadvantage to older male workers in that they earn substantially less than men.

Source: News Release The Center on Aging and Work/Workplace Flexibility (December 12, 2005)

Putnam Study Shows Many Retirees Reentering Workforce

Putnam Investments has released the results of a survey--“The Working Retired: Well Educated, High Income, but They Don’t Own Their Homes"--that shows that about 7 million previously retired Americans have returned to work for pay after an average sabbatical of one-and-a-half years. Most are in a job requiring at least the same skill and experience levels as their prior position. Putnam’s research was based on a national survey of 1,726 retirees who are working; they have an average age of 61. Of the respondents, most (54%) retirees work part time, 36% work full time, and the remaining 10% are looking for work; in addition, two-thirds said they planned to return to work following their first retirement.

Source: Press Release Putnam Investments (December 8, 2005)

Employers Opting to Maintain Retiree Drug Coverage for 2006

Most businesses (79%) that now provide retiree health benefits will accept government subsidies for continuing to provide retiree drug coverage at least as good as Medicare’s coverage when the new drug benefit starts in 2006, according to a new survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation and Hewitt Associates. According to the report--Prospects for Retiree Health Benefits as Medicare Drug Coverage Begins: Findings from the Kaiser/Hewitt 2005 Survey on Retiree Health Benefits, another 10% say that they will provide some drug coverage to supplement the new Medicare benefit, and 9% say that they plan to stop offering drug coverage to Medicare-eligible retirees.

“For many reasons, taking the retiree drug subsidy is the strategy of choice for large companies in 2006, but they will continue to reassess their strategies moving forward as more experience develops with Medicare drug plans,” said Frank McArdle, manager of Hewitt’s Washington, D.C., research office. “Unfortunately, retiree health cost pressures remain intense.”

In addition to providing more detail about employer policies affecting prescription drug coverage, the study shows that surveyed firms report an average increase of 10 percent in total retiree health costs between 2004 and 2005, including both Medicare-eligible retirees and early retirees (under age 65) who do not qualify for Medicare benefits. About one in eight surveyed firms (12%) say that they had stopped offering subsidized retiree health benefits in 2005 for future retirees, mainly newly hired workers.

Source: News Release Kaiser Family Foundation (December 7, 2005)

United Kingdon: Pensions Commission Recommends Raising Retirement Age and Other Reforms

The United Kingdon Pensions Commission has issued its report A New Pensions Settlement for the 21st Century with recommendations to increase the retirement age gradually to age 68 and to implement an integrated set of policies that can ensure that increasing life expectancy becomes not a problem but an opportunity for everyone. Key proposals from the Pensions Commission’s report include:

• The establishment of a National Pensions Saving Scheme into which all employees without good existing provision would be automatically enrolled but with the right to opt out.
  
• Reforms to the state system to ensure a sound foundation on which pension saving can build.
  
• Measures to improve the position of people with interrupted work records and caring responsibilities, who are disadvantaged by the existing contributory system.
  
• Measures to facilitate later working and flexible retirement for those who want it.

Other resources available online include the text and slides of Lord Adair Turner's presentation.

Source: Press Release The UK Pensions Commission November 30, 2005

AARP Expands Featured Employers Program

The AARP has expanded its "Featured Employers" program by collaborating with 11 additional major companies to help Americans aged 50 and over remain in the workforce as desired. In announcing the expansion, AARP CEO Bill Novelli said that "[a]s more and more workers reach traditional retirement age, there are not enough new workers to replace them. We are working with forward-thinking companies who value older workers to offset labor and knowledge gaps. This is a winning strategy for American business, for the older workers themselves and for our national economy."

Source: News Release AARP November 17, 2005

Age Discrimination Visible, but U.S. Businesses Urge Older Workers to Stay on the Job

According to a Hudson survey conducted by Rasmussen Reports, LLC, while 23% of the U.S. workforce knows of an older worker who has been denied a job, promotion, or raise because of age, more than twice as many businesses encourage older workers to stay on the job than to retire early; in fact, 38% of workers say their organizations keep older workers because they are difficult to replace, compared to 15 percent whose firms want to make way for younger workers.

Source: News Release The Hudson Employment Index November 16, 2005

Australia: Industry Not Stepping Up To Challenge of Aging Baby Boomers

A report from ABC Melbourne says that, at a recent seminar sponsored by Monash University’s Australian Centre for Research in Employment and Work, participants were told that, "despite the Federal Government pushing for greater participation of older workers in the labour market, industry is failing to develop proactive approaches for keeping Australia’s baby boomers in the workforce." Dr Glennis Hanley, from Monash University’s Department of Management, said that "[b]usinesses need to employ the broad-based business experiences of baby boomers to foster and transfer cross-generational knowledge as a means of integrating the diverse abilities of today’s heterogeneous workplace." According to Dr Tui McKeown, also from the Department of Management, by 2020 that 50 per cent of the current workforce will have retired and "[n]o action is currently being taken to recognise the skills of older workers." Drs. Hanley and McKeown are conducting research on Will You Still Need Me, Will You Still Feed Me, When I'm 64?.

Source: ABC Melbourne November, 28, 2005

Companies with Legacy Systems May Be Missing Out of Knowledge of Aging Workers

Ben Lieberman, principal architect for BioLogic Software Consulting, has published an article suggesting that many enterprises still execute critical business operations through older software systems that run on large, mainframe computers rather than individual PCs. Wrting about legacy systems for IBM's developerWorks, he argues that while these conmpanies continually update, extend, and integrate their systems, paradoxically many of them "also have policies that threaten the single greatest source of knowledge about their older systems: their most senior personnel. Although the aging workforce represents a vast pool of talent and experience, these businesses neither actively recruit senior workers nor provide incentives to retain those on staff. Instead, they mistakenly assume that they can hire younger, lower-paid people to perform the same tasks."

Clearly, senior personnel with intimate knowledge of the systems slated for replacement should play a pivotal role in the project. An organization that does not recognize the unique value of these individuals for new system development as well as legacy system maintenance may find that it has wasted a few million dollars on a new system that is not as effective as the old one. By actively working to retain these senior team members, organizations can dramatically reduce the costs associated with legacy system maintenance as well as the risks associated with system integration and replacement. Providing incentives in the form of personal growth strategies, such as training in the use of automated tools, involvement with new company projects, and other continuous learning opportunities, will help entice older personnel to remain within the company, share critical system information, and make invaluable contributions to system modernization projects.

Also, see interesting SlashDot conversation about this article.

Source: "Keeping the lights on: Legacy systems and the maturing workforce" IBM (September 15, 2005)

Aging Workforce Boosts Demand for Business Trainers

Cindy Mays of the Dallas Morning News writes that as a result of the increasing the aging workforce, as well as the increasing complexity of many jobs and an improved economy and corporate profits, "employers will devote greater resources to job-specific training programs, creating a strong demand for training and development specialists across all industries."

Source: "Business trainers back in demand" SouthEastCoast.com 9/20/2005

PA Governor Rendell Calls for Champions of Older Workers

Governor Edward G. Rendell announced that Pennsylvania is looking to honor and recognize those who champion older workers. As part of National Employ Older Workers Week, nominations are being accepted for the 21st annual Hall of Fame of Champions of Older Workers, which was was created to identify and recognize Pennsylvania employers who have made noteworthy efforts to hire older workers and to increase employment opportunities for those aged 55 and older. Employers who have actively recruited older workers, developed opportunities and training, provided flexible schedules, promoted older workers from within or generally made accommodations for a mature workforce are being sought statewide. The winners will be formally honored during the Pennsylvania Employer Awards luncheon at the Hershey Lodge and Convention Center in May 2006. All nominations must be received on or before Nov. 18. Nomination forms are available on the web.

Source: News Release Office of Governor, Pennsylvania 9/20/2005

America's Aging Workforce Posing New Opportunities and Challenges for Companies to Utilize Mature Employees

According to a new report issued by The Conference Board, "the rapidly aging global workforce-–caused mainly by the number of retirement-eligible employees continuing to work-–is both a challenge and major opportunity for corporations." In the report ("Managing the Mature Workforce," Lorrie Foster, Director of Research Working Groups at The Conference Board and co-author of the report with management consultant Lynne Morton and noted author Jeri Sedlar, Senior Advisor to The Conference Board on mature workforce issues, argue that "skills and knowledge mature workers possess can be utilized to great advantage by a company that knows itself well and can identify its weak areas that can be bolstered by the right mature workers." In particular, the report recommends

a series of strategic ideas and actions to foster effective management of any “retirement risk” to the business posed by a potential exit wave of mature workers. Among them:

• Identify potential gaps and knowledge transfer needs
  
• Broaden succession planning thinking
  
• Check communications mechanisms and messages for intergenerational approach
  
• Review training history
  
• Capitalize on affinity groups
  
• Become an “employer of choice” for all generations
  
• Encourage better financial planning among employees
  
• Build a retiree network
  
• Offer benefits of interest to mature workers such as long-term care insurance, pre-retirement planning, health and wellness programs, comprehensive medical coverage, including prescription drugs, health coverage for retirees and part-time workers, prorated benefits for employees on flexible work schedules

Source: News Release The Conference Board (September 19, 2005)

BC center lands $3M to study aging workforce

The newly established Boston College Center on Aging & Work has received a $3-million grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation to study how the American workplace will evolve to accommodate its aging workforce. That question and others related to the impending challenge facing the U.S. as a large segment of its workers approaches the "traditional" age of retirement will be part of the three-year research-centered grant. "One thing that can affect older workers’ decisions about work that is often over-looked is the availability, or lack of availability, of flexible work options," said Boston College Center on Aging & Work Co-Director Michael A. Smyer. "Our work will focus on the study of working flexibility because it is a particularly important element of innovative employer responses to the aging workforce."

Source: News Release Boston College 9/6/2005

Canada: Mining Industry Faces Serious Worker Shortage from Comng Retirements

According to "Prospecting the Future: Meeting Human Resources Challenges in Canada’s Minerals and Metals Sector", the Canadian mining industry will need up to 81,000 new people to meet current and future needs and to fill positions vacated by retirees. The research was conducted by Mining Industry Training and Adjustment Council – Canada (MITAC), and its key findings suggest "the industry could lose up to 40 per cent of the existing workforce in the next ten years. More than half of its current workforce is eligible to retire in the next five to ten years taking with them an average of 21 years of mining sector experience each. The largest percentage of workers planning to retire within the next ten years is in the skilled trades group."

Source: News Release Mining Industry Training and Adjustment Council - Canada (August 23, 2005)

Employers Encouraged To Include Age of Workers in Diversity Thinking

Based on an executive strategy briefing entitled, "Maximizing Human Capital Assets Through Generational Competence," Ceridian is encouraging employers to evaluate their organization's level of "generational competence" to determine how well they have adapted to meet the different needs of the four generations of workers now employed in today's U.S. workforce. "While today's workplace has made great progress in recognizing and embracing differences, until now age has rarely been part of the diversity agenda. A company's generational competence will become a major factor to help organizations achieve the full contribution of their most talented employees," according to the sutdy's lead author, Diane Piktialis, Ph.D., director of work-life services for Ceridian.

“An organization’s viability depends on its ability to hire, retain—and gain the full contribution of—the most talented employees across the generations,” said Piktialis. By instituting human capital management processes, designing benefits and employee effectiveness services, and tailoring talent management to address the needs and earn the engagement of employees of different generations, an organization is taking steps toward generational competence.”

To ultimately seize the opportunities of a multigenerational workforce and achieve generational competence, Ceridian encourages employers to understand and build awareness of generational differences; study how different generations interact, use products and access services within the enterprise; leverage generational understanding to identify market opportunities and to improve marketing, product development, customer service and management practices; and design projects to provide opportunities for cross-generational collaboration.

Source: News Release Ceridian (August 1, 2005)

MetLife Study on Retirement Income of Silent Generation

According to the MetLife Retirement Income Decisions Study: The Silent Generation Speaks, 83% "Silent Generation"--Americans between the ages of 59 and 71--pre-retirees and 90% of retirees are confident that they have enough money to live comfortably until at least age 85. However, many are not as informed as they should about their longevity risk and have not taken steps to ensure that they will have enough money to last throughout their lifetime--34% of pre-retirees have not calculated how much monthly income they will need in retirement, and 45% of pre-retirees and 47% of retirees have not estimated the annual rate of inflation over the next ten years. [This study focused only on popele with non-housing assets of a least $100,000 who identified themselves as a primary or joint financial decision-maker for their household.]

Source: News Release MetLife (June 21, 2005)

Hewitt Study Shows Nearly Half of U.S. Workers Cash Out of 401(k) Plans When Leaving Jobs

Despite the growing need for employees to save for retirement, a significant number of workers participating in 401(k) plans "cash out" of them once they leave their company, according to new research by Hewitt Associates. Hewitt's study of nearly 200,000 workers who participate in their 401(k) plans found that 45% elected to take a cash distribution once they left their jobs. The remainder either kept their savings in their current employer's 401(k) plan (32%) or rolled the money over to a qualified IRA or other retirement plan (23%). While employees who were older and more tenured were more likely to preserve their retirement wealth, more than 42% of workers age 40-49 also elected to cash out of their 401(k) plans upon leaving their jobs.

Source: Press Release Hewitt Associates (July 25, 2005)

Japan: Population Decline Requires Rethinking Employment of Elderly

According to an article by Kenichi Aoyama/Kentaro Nakajima, Japan's Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry's latest population survey is another reminder of the need to address an anticipated decline in the workforce as Japan is expected to experience a population decline of about 10 million people (to about 117.58 million by 2030). "To make sure Japan remains an economic power, it is imperative to step up efforts to improve labour productivity while also reforming this country's various systems, including the social security system."

Among other things, the ministry panel studying employment policies proposed aiding older people--those in their late 60s, for instance--in their efforts to find jobs. The article also notes that many experts have called for reforming this country's various systems to a1ccommodate a reduction in the population, including the education and pension systems, and quotes Hisakazu
Kato, an assistant professor of demographic economics at Meiji University, calling for Japan to "think about the importance of training personnel again, for instance by retraining the elderly and improving education programs for the young."

Source: "Population Report Shows Need For Action" e-Sinchew.com (July 29, 2005)

Ontario Unveils Plan To Help Retain Older Nurses

The McGuinty government in Ontario is creating a program to help keep experienced nurses on the job longer. Specifically, it is planning to use $25 million to support late-career nurses working in hospitals by giving nurses over the age of 55 the opportunity to stay on in their profession in less physically demanding roles, such as working as mentors, patient and family educators or staff advisors on clinical issues.

Source: News Release Office of the Premier of Ontario (July 25, 2005)

Canada: Older Workers With High Job Stress More Likely To Retire Earlier

According to an article by Yosie Saint-Cyr in HRinfodesk, a recent study--"Job strain and retirement" by Martin Turcotte and Grant Schellenberg, published in the July 2005 Issue of Perspectives on Labour and Income by Statistics Canada indicates that job strain, caused by a combination of a heavy workload, time constraints, conflicting demands and lack of control, may be an overlooked factor in an employee’s decision to retire. Several other studies have already documented this negative relationship. "This study found that many workers who felt stressed and dissatisfied with their job felt they could not retire soon enough, while others delayed retirement for the simple reason that they enjoyed their work (because they were able to balance demands with the power to make decisions)." The National Population Health Survey examined whether older workers (aged 45 to 57 in 1994) who experience high job strain will be more likely to retire than those who do not feel the same pressure at work. The study found that, between 1996 and 2002, older workers in managerial, professional or technical jobs with high job strain were much more likely to retire early than those with low job strain. However, for sales, services, clerical and blue-collar occupations, job strain was not related to retirement.

Source: "Link Between Job Strain and Retirement" HRinfodesk
(July 2005)

Workforce Needs Education About Aging and Disability

Karen Ignagni, President and CEO of America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), issued a statement following her participation in the Disability and Aging Mini-Conference of the 2005 White House Conference on Aging, that "a majority of workers underestimate the risk of becoming disabled and believe they are covered by disability insurance. In reality, only a third of workers are covered and workers compensation provides inadequate protection for individuals suffering from 90 percent of disabilities.”

Source: News Release America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) (July 21, 2005)

Creating a Market for Senior Experts

Reporting in the International Herald Tribune, Thomas Fuller writes about Sebastian Vallbracht, who founded VMVO Senior Expert Consultancy and is in the business of scouring Europe for candidates for scientific and financial consulting jobs--with the proviso that these peopel be at least in their 40s, preferably in their 50s or 60s. The average age of the 90 experts he has engaged is about 55--and this, "[o]n a continent where early retirement has long been regarded as a way to free up jobs for younger generations." Fuller also writes about Michel Delannoy, the founder of a federation of organizations in France that seek to promote senior employment, who he quotes as saying that when older workers leave the labor market prematurely, it is a "loss in terms of productivity for the nation."

Source: The Workplace: When gray is better than green International Herald Tribune (July 6, 2005)

Aging U.S. Workforce Creates Challenges to Corporate Health and Productivity

New research conducted by UnumProvident Corporation, a provider of group and individual disability income, focuses on the aging American workforce, particularly on the potential health and productivity predicaments that demand a response from employers, medical providers and the workers themselves. According to the findings reported in "Health & Productivity in the Aging American Work Force: Realities and Opportunities,"

• Although workers age 40 and older experience a lower incidence of work injuries, short term disability and unscheduled absences than younger workers, the average amount of time they will miss due to an injury or illness is greater by nearly a third.
  
• Workers older than age 40 account for 50 percent of all short-term disability claims and up to 75 percent of long-term disability claims.
  
• Primary reasons for long term work disruptions for this age group include impairments of the musculoskeletal and circulatory systems as well as mental and cancer disorders.
  
• The additional presence of risk factors such as smoking, lack of exercise and obesity can result in healthcare costs for this population that are nearly 300 percent higher than the younger workforce.

The report notes that companies that develop programs to support and promote preventive health care among their baby boomer employees will encourage behavior that can counter these trends. By putting programs in place that provide incentives for workers to have healthier lifestyles, lost time and health care costs can be reduced. It provides a case study from Coors Brewing Company to model such corporate response.

Source: News Release UnumProvident (July 7, 2005)

Commentary: The Sun Sets On the Golden Years

Writing in The Nation, William Greider writes that many millions of baby boomers are realizizing as they approach retirement age that they can't afford to retire at all, much less retire early. Focusing on savings need to ensure a solid retirement, Greider says that "[t]he fundamental truth (well understood among experts) is that individualized accounts can never match the investment returns of a large common fund, broadly diversified and soundly managed, because the pension fund is able to average its results over a very long time span, thirty years or more." Suggesting that a "mandatory savings" solution might be required, he writes:

While most politicians don't dare embrace a "mandatory" solution--not yet, anyway--it is not self-evident that ordinary Americans would reject one, if properly educated about the alternatives. Most people are conflicted. They know they need to save more--retirement is a very meaningful investment for them--but it's very hard to accomplish, given the competing pressures. They like the concept of personal accounts but are also aware of their vulnerability as amateur investors.

For discussion of this article, see comments posted on AlterNet.

Source: " Riding Into the Sunset" The Nation (June 27, 2005)

Indiana Researcher Discusses Aging Workers

Barry Spiker, senior fellow with
University of Indianapolis Center for Aging & Community, is interviewed about his work studying how older workers are perceived in the workplace and what it means for local and national economies. He surveys Indiana as a whole, as well as specific industries that soon will be affected by baby boomer retirements. Spiker's recommendations for capturing the intellectual and emotional capital of the work force:

• If you know someone is going to retire in six months, make sure he has phased retirement that he comes back in two or three days a week.
  
• Morbidity increases when people leave the workplace. It's better for the health care industry by keeping people working. Get someone to mentor a junior worker to pass on knowledge, but also his networks -- which he knows.
  
• The emotional capital is a great way for younger workers to learn from older workers. It's being steady and calm. It's maturity and that's not something that can be taught, but learned by watching.
  
• You take someone who is retiring and say, "We'll give you a bounty for all your knowledge."
  

Source: "Research helps reshape work force" Indianapolis Star online (June 27, 2005)

Taking Care of Parents Causes South Florida Employers To Lose Money and Productivity

According to A Good Daughter, Inc., which developed and markets a Corporate Elder Care program, 17% of caregivers quit their jobs to provide care for aging family members, and another 15% reduce their work hours to assist their loved ones. All told, loss of productivity resulting from time off to care for an aging relative is estimated to cost South Florida employers $6100 per employee per year. According to Olga Brunner, President, "Our Corporate Elder Care program was developed to help employees balance job responsibilities and caregiving. Our Professional Care Managers plan and organize care and services for the employees of Broward and Palm Beach elderly population, affording families a peace of mind that their loved ones will find and secure services such as ongoing supervision of certified home care assistants, home maintenance and care, medication supervision, coordination of medical appointments and representation at these appointments, legal counsel, specialized air travel escorts, and many other services."

Source: News Release A Good Daughter, Inc. (June 20, 2005)

Business community makes recommendations for White Conference on Aging

At the "Voice of Business on the Mature Workforce"--a run-up miniconference for this year's White House Conference on the Aging--sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, SHRM, and AARP, among others, business representatives voted to present four recommendations to be presented at the December conference to redesign public policies to accommodate a maturing workforce and retirees. As reported by UPI, speakers at the forum discussed the challenges facing the United States as older workers become the fastest-growing segment of the workforce. The four recommendations that will be sent to the White House are:

• allowing greater flexibility in retirement plan design and management;
• removing unnecessary rules and regulations in the private pension system;
• developing phased retirement programs, and
• creating a bipartisan commission to address the issue of mature workers.

Source: "Chamber of Commerce weighs in on retirement" Monsters and Critics.com (June 17, 2005)

HR can help businesses plan for maturing workforce

Speaking at “Voice of Business on the Mature Workforce,” a forum which was aimed at adding the business community’s perspective to the White House Conference on Aging, Susan R. Meisinger, SPHR, president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), one of the sponsors of the forum, told her audience that HR professionals can take steps to help their organizations plan strategically for the maturing workforce and its economic impact by:

• Conducting studies to determine the projected demographic makeup of their organization’s workforce and projected retirement rates. People are concerned about doing anything that could be construed as discriminatory, she said, but “it’s OK to look at an employee’s age for workforce planning.”
• Developing succession plans and replacement charts. “The pool to draw from is smaller. … How are you mentoring?” she asked.
• Developing processes to capture institutional knowledge. It can be difficult to focus years ahead when an organization’s immediate concern is how it is doing now, she acknowledged. Developing methods to capture institutional knowledge is probably the best tool HR can use to galvanize people and make executive managers aware of the need to plan for the organization’s future, she said.
• Creating or redesigning positions that allow near-retirees to ease into retirement. This requires stepping back and looking beyond job titles and duties and focusing on what needs to be accomplished.

HR professionals also may develop and shape workforce training and development programs.

Source: "Meisinger: HR can help stem boomer brain drain" SHRM Online (June 16, 2005)

Leave Sharing as Benefit for Older Public Workers

According to an article by Kathleen Murphy for Stateline, leave-sharing "is a job benefit states are offering more often than the private sector with an eye toward retaining an aging state workforce"--"especially the 44% of state employees age 45 and older who otherwise might look toward retirement." Eighteen states currently have have collective leave banks, while 22 states allow direct donation of leave to individual employees, including 2 states that offer both. It can be a win-win situation for states and their employees: "When catastrophic illness strikes, leave-sharing helps older and ailing employees keep their jobs and helps prevent them from spending down their savings to qualify for Medicaid, the pricey state-run program that gives medical benefits to indigent and low-income people."

Source: Leave-sharing helps retain state workers" Stateline.org (June 11, 2005)

Majority of Workers Expect (and Want) To Work Longer

Following up on research conducted by AgeWave finding that 80% of workers surveyed in 10 countries "believe mandatory retirement should be abolished and a majority expect to continue working after they have "retired" from their prime-time careers," Janet Kidd Stewart writes that it appears a majority of workers now expect--even want--to work later into their old age:

{T]here is some anecdotal evidence that at least some older workers are already staying on the payroll longer. One of the most pressing problems for the Service Corps of Retired Workers, a service that uses volunteer retirees to help train entrepreneurs, is finding experienced volunteers who have left the workforce, said Jim Pyles, the group's chairman.

However, she also notes that aging "doesn't always work out the way we want." For example, "we may think we want to continue working, but a health issue of our own or of a spouse can quickly curtail those expectations. Or a corporate downsizing or merger may thrust us out into the workforce at an age when we are overlooked by potential employers."

Source: "Later, later, many now say to early retirement" Chicago Tribune (June 5, 2008)

Canada: Ontario Introduces Legislation To End Mandatory Retirement

Ontario Labour Minister Chris Bentley announced that the McGuinty government was introducing legislation that would end mandatory retirement and provide greater fairness and choice for workers aged 65 and older. The legislation proposes to amend the Ontario Human Rights Code, which currently does not protect people aged 65 and over from age discrimination for employment purposes, to only permit mandatory retirement where it can be justified on "bona fide occupational requirement" grounds determined under the Code (that is, where there is a requirement or qualification necessary for the performance of essential job duties).

Source: News Release Canada NewsWire Group (June 7, 2005)

United Kingdom: Acas launches guide to recruiting older workers

Acas, the government-funded Advisory Conciliation and Arbitration Service, has launched a new advisory leaflet to help employers make the most of older workers. It looks at some of the stereotypes about older workers and gives practical advice on what to consider when recruiting, planning for the future and managing older employees. According to Acas Chief Executive John Taylor, "The working population is getting older and employers may face skills shortages when existing workers retire if they fail to ensure they don't discriminate against older workers when recruiting." Furthermore, "[o]ur advice is easy to understand and practical. We aim to be the first port of call for employers who need advice on these sorts of issues. This booklet gives employers useful and straightforward information on what they need to consider to help them recruit and retain older workers." The booklet, Employing Older Workers, is available online.

Source: News Release Acas (June 6, 2005)

Consultant poll shows weak employer support for phased-in retirement

Morneau Sobeco, a human resources consulting company, reports that a "60 Second Survey" conducted in May indicates that employers are less than enthusiastic about the concept of phased-in retirement over the next 5 years. "Only 12% of respondents were prepared to encourage phased-in retirement in the case of non-union employees who are within 5 years of retirement. Another 51% said they were willing to consider it but only if the employee requested it." Asked about what they saw as the biggest hurdle to implementing a phased-in retirement program, "60% of respondents indicated it was because most jobs are full-time in nature and not easily reduced to a part-time status. Another 25% cited the challenge it would involve in re-designing pension and benefit plans. Only 6% felt the main stumbling block is that it would encourage employees to stay too long."

Source: News Release Morneau Sobeco (May 13, 2005)

World Bank Report: World Faces Pensions Crunch, Major Reforms Unavoidable

As policymakers in the United States, Europe and Asia grapple with the long-term affordability of their pensions systems, a new World Bank report says that growing demographic and economic pressures are forcing both developing and developed countries to undertake urgent pension reform. According to the report, Old-Age Income Support in the Twenty-First Century: An International Perspective on Pensions and Reform, more women in the global workforce, rising divorce rates, changing employment patterns in the global economy, rising budget deficits, and rising numbers of elderly are making the case for pension reform unavoidable.

Source: Kansas City infoZine (May 24, 2005)

Helping Women Overcome a Grey Ceiling: Tory Johnson

Tory Johnson, chief executive officer of WomenForHire.com and author of "Women For Hire's Get-Ahead Guide to Career Success," was interviewed on ABC's "Good Morning America" and gave advice to women on how to beat the perception that youth rules in the workplace and how to get the most of one's career as one get older. Johnson says Americans over 40 in search of jobs are encountering something they weren't looking for: a "gray ceiling"--a career advancement barrier that many older workers face in a workplace seemingly dominated by young people. Among the tips she offered on on how to make age an asset, not an obstacle, in the workplace, are:

• Don't use age as a crutch.
• Anticipate the stereotype and be prepared to counter it.
• Don't focus on age, focus on experience.
• Anticipate industry-specific opposition.

Source: "How Women Can Avoid the 'Gray Ceiling' at Work" ABC News: Good Morning America (May 24, 2005)

Prudential Financial Survey Uncovers Roadblocks to Retirement

According to the results of a survey conducted by Prudentail Financial, during the first 10 years of retirement, 70% of Americans currently expect to continue working to supplement income and continue to build their retirement nest egg. In the study--Roadblocks to Retirement, 60% of those Americans aged 30-69 who were surveyed in late December 2004 indicated they are "behind schedule in saving for retirement and the vast majority now expects to work longer and/or to continue working in some way in retirement." Four in 10 indicated they were forced to retire (nearly half of them under 60), and almost two-thirds those indicated they were not financially prepared. Looking forward, many expressed a desire for a new approach to make retirement simpler and more accessible, with education and training and more objective recommendations about how to save and plan; in particular, they found appeal in the idea of a holistic training program aimed at helping Americans transition into retirement, something similar to what the military offers to help members adjust to civilian life.

Source: Press Release Prudential Financial (May 24, 2005)

Law Firm Cautions Employers On ADEA Language in Separation Waviers

Roxane Sokolove Marenberg, Adrianne C. Mazura, Dov Grunschlag and Charlene Wilson of DLA Piper Rudnick Gray Cary, responding to a recent court of appeals decision "that the release of ADEA claims contained in a general release and covenant not to sue was sufficiently ambiguous that it did not constitute a knowing and voluntary waiver of the employee's rights under the ADEA," caution employers to make sure that they follow waiver requirements or otherwise they may find that a claim they believed was settled or released is in fact alive.

Source: "Ambiguities in ADEA Waivers May Crater Releases" Mondaq (requires free registration) (May 20, 2005)

Older Workers Are Often Preferred to Younger Ones Because They Perform Better

Gary Geyer writes in 50plus Online Magazine reports that many companies are now looking to hire older workers because among other things, they often perform better than younger ones. Not only have they discovered that older workers often perform better on the job, they are more likely to be loyal to a company—not quitting after a few years. Turnover rate for workers over 50 is just one tenth that of those under 30. Conventional wisdom was that hiring older workers would be more costly, what with more medical problems and missed workdays. More and more companies are realizing that that is not the case. They find that training, recruitment costs and time spent learning are much lower for older workers, so the difference in costs are negligible.

Source: "Older Workers Wanted," 50plus Online Magazine (May 20, 2005)

United Kingdom : Unemployment and Older Workers

Since the mid-1990s there has been a rapid rise in the number of older people in work. In spring 2003 seven in ten people aged between 50 and State Pension Age, and almost one in ten people over State Pension Age, were working. According to the Autumn 2004 ONS Labour Force Survey, older (50 to state pension age) workers’s ILO unemployment rates are lower than those of their younger counterparts--2.9% compared to 3.4% for the 25 to 49 age group and 12.6% for the 16 to 24 age group. In addition, older workers are more likely to be working part-time than the 25 to 49 age group, and self-employment is more common amongst older workers compared to the younger age groups.

Source: "Older people are much more likely to be long-term unemployed" TheMatureMarket.co.uk (May 23, 2005)

U.S. Companies Fail to Capture, Transfer Critical Workforce Knowledge and Skills

According to a survey of more than 500 full-time U.S. workers between 40 and 50 years of age conducted by Accenture, 45% of those employees said that their employers do not have formal workforce planning processes and/or tools in place to capture their workplace knowledge. In addition, 26% percent reported that their organizations will let them retire without any transfer of knowledge. However, 34% reported that their companies hire retired employees as contractors so those former employees can transfer their knowledge and skills to their replacements. Kathy Battistoni, a partner in Accenture’s Human Performance practice, said “Companies should take three critical steps to meet the challenge of transferring knowledge from retiring employees.”

First, they must understand the extent of the problem, including the skills at risk, and their organization’s ability to tackle it. Second, they must develop a strategy to capture and transfer core skills from retiring employees and to identify, attract and retain new workers with critical skills. Finally, they must manage and measure the progress of the entire effort. The bottom line is that leaders in this arena know that capturing critical workforce knowledge and skills can’t be left to chance.

Source: News Release Accenture May 10, 2005

AARP Pushes for Fairness to Unemployed Older Workers

After the Pennsylvania House Labor Relations voted in favor of House Bill 163, a measure to allow qualified unemployed workers who are receiving Social Security benefits to get full unemployment compensation, AARP Pennsylvania recognized the action to end the state's practice of discriminating against unemployed older workers. According to AARP, Pennsylvania currently penalizes these unemployed workers by forcing them to forfeit $1 of unemployment compensation for every $2 they receive in Social Security benefits. "This is an unfair situation for older workers," said J. Shane Creamer, AARP Pennsylvania State President. "These workers and their employers contribute to the unemployment compensation system just like any worker. Yet should they lose their job, they are denied their full unemployment compensation payment." Thirteen other states penalize older workers in this manner, and West Virginia and Hawaii enacted legislation earlier this year to enable older workers in those states to collect full unemployment benefits.

Source: News Release PR Newswire (May 12, 2005)

Census Bureau Issues Study of Older Workers in Pennsylvania

The U.S. Census Bureau has issued a report--A Profile of Older Workers in Pennsylvania (PDF)--finding that, in 2002, about 37% of working Pennsylvanians were age 45 or older, an increase from 33% in 1998. The share of the Keystone State’s workers who were age 65 or older increased slightly over the period, from about 3% to 3.4%. Other highlights of the report indicated that in several industries (local and suburban transit, apparel manufacturing, textile mill products, real estate and educational services), more than 1-in-5 workers were 55 or older and that workers 65 or older were most likely to be employed in 2002 in health services, business services, wholesale trade of durable goods, and food stores.

Source: News Release U.S. Census Bureau (May 10, 2005)

Survey: Future of Retirement

The international banking group HSBC Group has published a comprehensive study on global attitudes to ageing and retirement, which shows that for many people traditional retirement is a thing of the past: 80% want to scrap mandatory retirement while just 14% equate financial independence with old age. Entitled "The Future of Retirement." the study examines attitudes in 10 countries (Brazil, Canada, mainland China and Hong Kong, France, India, Japan, Mexico, the UK and the USA). In addition to finding that what people want is greater choice in when and how they retire.ow they retire, less than a quarter (21%) said that never working for pay again would form part of their ideal retirement.

The median age of the global population will increase dramatically by 20404, straining the funding of retirement. But given the choice between increasing taxes, reducing pensions or raising the retirement age to ease this burden, 45 per cent chose the latter, emphasising the desire of many to make their own decisions. Just 26 per cent said they would accept higher taxes. Only 15 per cent opted to reduce pension benefits.

However, while the research uncovered a growing desire to redefine how we traditionally think about later life, it also found that people in many countries are unsure of where to go to find appropriate advice. Almost two-thirds (63 per cent) of those surveyed said they had begun to prepare for retirement but most of this was restricted to reading up on the subject and discussion with family and friends.

In addition to publishing the survey, HSBC has created a Future of Retirement website which offers interactive test for determining how prepared a person is for retirement and retirement solutions offered in various countries.

Source: News Release HSBC Media (May 10, 2005)

Aging of Baby Boomers Brings Focus to Age Discrimination

According to an article by Bill Leonard, Jonathan A. Segal, a partner with the Philadelphia-based law firm of Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen, told Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) that preventing age bias could become the top diversity challenge that employers must confront over the next five to 10 years. Speakng to SHRM employees as part of SHRM's recognition and celebration of older worker, Segal said that the changing demographic of the more than 75 million baby boomers in the United States has created what he called the “baby boom-erang” and that many employers are clearly guilty of what he called the “Dracula complex”--“They want newer and fresher blood, because they’re under the mistaken impression that it can bring vitality to an organization.”

Segal said it’s easy for employers to address some problems with age discrimination by making sure to avoid improper job interview questions about age and to use uniform interview questions for all employees. Uniform questions can protect employers from unconscious age bias and illustrate their commitment to equal employment opportunity, Segal said.

He said that employers need to be aware of their decision-making processes and remove unlawful considerations of age.

“In other words, there is no such thing as a ‘young person’s job,’ and discomfort with older employees is never a defense in an age-discrimination claim,” he said. “Management should ensure consistency of all hiring and promotions decisions regardless of age relative to providing opportunities, offering training, setting expectations and measuring the results. Everyone must be treated equally.”

Source: "Aging baby boomers bring age bias to the forefront" HR News Online (May 11, 2005)

Alaska Holds Hearings on Senior Employment

The Alaska Commission on Aging is conducting a series of forums around the state to develop recommendations on senior employment, among other things, for this fall's White House Conference on Aging. According to a story by Claire Chandler following one hearing in Anchorage, older workers were described as punctual, reliable, productive and having a good sense about what is important, among other positive attributes valued by employers. Chandler reports that Jeff Kemp, coordinator of the labor department's Mature Alaskans Seeking Skills Training program, told the forum that fears that older workers will take other people's jobs and promotions is unfounded. In addition, Marty Richards, an affiliate assistant professor at the University of Washington's Institute of Aging, "encouraged employers to look for ways to utilize seniors' skills by allowing them to work flexible schedules as they slowly transition from full-time work to retirement."

Source" "Options explored to keep older Alaskans working" Alaska Journal of Commerce (May 1, 2005)

Supreme Court Not To Review Maximum Age for Pilots

On May 1, the Supreme Court declined to hear a pilot group's challenge to a federal rule forcing them to retire at age 60. Accordingly, they left in place a ustices let stand a lower ruling in favor of the Federal Aviation Administration, which says the retirement rule for commercial pilots is necessary for safety. Officials have argued that pilots lose critical cognitive and motor skills as they age.

Source: "Court declines to review pilot retirements" Business Week (May 2, 2005)