Research: Effect of Early Retirement and Part-time Employment on Participation Rates of Older Workers in Europe

The results of a study analyzing the variation in labor market withdrawal of older workers across 13 European countries over the period 1995-2008 has been published. In "Early retirement across Europe. Does non-standard employment increase participation of older workers?," Jim Been and Olaf Van Vliet sought "to contribute to existing macro-econometric studies by taking non-standard employment into account, by relating the empirical model more explicitly to optional value model theory on retirement decisions and by using a two-step IV-GMM estimator to deal with endogeneity issues."

Their analysis, published as Netspar Discussion Paper No. 10-2014-044 led Been and Van Vliet to the conclusion that part-time employment is negatively related to labor market withdrawal of older men. This relationship is less strong among women. In addition, they found that part-time employment at older ages does not decrease the average actual hours worked. Furthermore, the results show a positive relationship between unemployment among older workers and early retirement similar to previous studies.

As a wider implication, our results suggest that facilitating part-time work might contribute to higher labor market participation among older workers at the extensive margin. However, facilitating part-time employment could also induce a reduction in working hours among persons who would otherwise have remained working in full-time employment. Our analysis suggests that increases in part-time employment did not have negative effects on the labor supply at the intensive margin across countries. For men, the results even suggest clear positive effects. This indicates that part-time work schemes may actually increase the labor supply at both the extensive and the intensive margin at older ages.

Source: Social Science Research Network Abstract (October 15, 2014)

United Kingdom: Survey Finds Gen Y Employees with Negative Attitude Toward Older Workers, Flextime

According to research conducted for the United Kingdom law firm Doyle Clayton, Generation Y employees have the most negative attitudes towards older employees and part-time and flexible workers. In addition, "Age Before Beauty? The Challenges Facing Britain's Managers in Overcoming Age and Gender Discrimination in the Workplace" reports that, according to their employees, micro businesses are Britain’s least discriminatory workplaces, and mid-sized businesses are where you are most likely to experience discrimination at work.

Among the key findings from "Age Before Beauty?" are:

• in micro businesses (1-9 employees), 96% of employees feel that age discrimination has never been an issue;
• in medium sized (50 – 249) and larger businesses, over 20% of employees had witnessed discrimination on grounds of age, whereas in micro businesses virtually no employee interviewed had witnessed it;
• 20% of employees at medium sized and large businesses view colleagues who work flexibly as less committed, whereas employees at micro businesses were consistently more positive; and
• Generation Y have the most discriminatory attitude toward flexible working and older workers, with 27.4% of those aged 25 to 34 seeing fellow employee working part-time as less committed, 31.1% seeing those working from home two or more days a week as less committed, and 18.3% (more than twice any other age group) seeing workers over 60 as less valuable.

Source: Doyle Clayton News (September 2, 2014)

Aging Workforce Issues Come To the Comics Page

I don't know how long this story line will go on, but starting with the July 28, 2014, strip "Judge Parker," older workers are being looked at as a means of building new business with lower labor costs.

In this instance, senior citizens are being targeted for their decreased need for health care and pensions. It will be interesting to see what transpires, but the concept that the seniors that need work might be the ones without health care and pensions seems to be missing.

Source: Washington Post Judge Parker (July 28, 2014)

United Kingdom: Government Appoints Business Champion for Older Workers

Dr. Ros Altmann CBE has been appointed by the United Kingdom government as its new Business Champion for Older Workers. A former director-general of Saga and independent expert on later life issues, Dr. Altmann is tasked with making the case for older workers within the business community and challenging outdated perceptions. Her appointment follows the government’s publication of "Fuller Working Lives – A Framework For Action," which set out the benefits to individuals, business and the economy as a whole of people aged over 50 staying in work.

In making the appointment, Minister of Work and Pensions Steve Webb MP, said that he "wanted a powerful voice; someone respected amongst the business community, with a track record of speaking up for consumer rights without fear or favour. In Dr Ros Altmann that’s exactly what we have." Dr. Altmann said:

I am really proud to be taking on this new role and look forward to championing over 50s in the workplace. This fast-growing section of society has so much experience and talent to offer and could play a vital role in future growth. Everyone can benefit from ensuring their skills do not go to waste. I also look forward to challenging some of the outdated and downright inaccurate perceptions of later life workers who still have so much to offer.

Source: United Kingdom Department of Work and Pensions Press Release (July 14, 2014)

Midwestern United States: Immigration Helping To Overcome Population Loss and Aging Workforce

The Chicago Council on Global Affairs has issued a report finding that immigration is a demographic lifeline for metropolitan areas throughout the 12-state Midwest region, helping to overcome population decline and an aging workforce. According to "Growing the Heartland: How Immigrants Offset Population Decline and an Aging Workforce in
Midwest Metropolitan Areas," authored by Rob Paral, the number of native-born persons aged 35 to 44—in their prime working and tax-paying years—fell by 1.4 million from 2000 to 2010 in the Midwest, while the percent of Midwesterners who are in their late working years or early retirement years is on the upswing. On the other hand, while the number of native-born persons in Midwestern metro areas grew by only 3.3% between 2000 and 2010, the number of immigrants grew by 27%, so that immigration now accounts for 38.4% of all metro area growth in the Midwest.

“The demographics reveal that the immigrant population is here and important to the region’s growth,” said Juliana Kerr, who directs The Chicago Council’s immigration work. “Policymakers now should focus on developing effective policies to seamlessly integrate immigrants and leverage their economic potential.”

Source: The Chicago Council on Global Affairs Press Release (June 24, 2014)

Research: Pension Workshop Includes Presentations on Interplay of Continued Work and Pension Claims

The Netspar International Pension Workshop hosted by Venice International University in June 2014, heard presentations on a range of topics on the common themes of retirement, pensions and aging. Among other things, presentations included:

• Matthew Rutledge (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College) "Point of no return: How do financial resources affect the timing of retirement after a job separation?," with follow-up presentation by discussant Mauro Mastrogiacomo
• April Wu (Center for Retirement Research at Boston College) "How do subjective longevity expectations influence retirement plans?" with follow-up presentation by discussant: Susan Thorp
• Nadia Karamcheva (Urban Institute)
  "Does household debt influence the labor supply and benefit claiming decisions of older Americans?" with follow-up presentation by discussant: Giacomo Pasini
• Ricky Kanabar (University of York) "To defer or not defer? State pension in a lifecycle model" with follow-up presentation by discussant: Markus Knell

Source: Netspar News Release (June 23, 2014)

Singapore: Government Announces Plan for Incentives to Employers Implementing Flexible Work for Mature Workers

At a speech on "Effective Workplaces: Creating a Flexible, Inclusive, Safe and Healthy Workplace" delivered at the Age Management Seminar, Dr. Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for Health and Manpower, announced several enhancements that the Singapore Government was going to make to WorkPro to help employers better manage mature workers, especially with respect to flexible work arrangements (FWAs). The most significant enhancement is to:

provide employers with a $10,000 incentive to pilot new FWAs, and an additional $10,000 to support them in implementing the FWAs company-wide. With the enhancement, employers can receive a total funding of $40,000 for implementing FWAs, including the reimbursement of expenses incurred during the pilot and company-wide implementation.

In addition, expanding on the $40,000 a year employers can currently receive if they have 30% of their workers using FWAs, there will also be a cash incentive of up to $25,000 a year for employers who have 20% of workers benefitting from FWAs.

Khor also announced that the goverment would introduce a Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) Facilitator’s course, to help arm employers with the necessary knowledge and tools to plan, design and evaluate workplace health programs for their workers. "This will ensure that all employers who tap on the Age Management Grant have the capability to actively promote healthy living among their employees, especially the older ones."

In order "for companies to understand the value that mature workers bring to their business, and adopt a nondiscriminatory mindset when it comes to hiring and managing workers," Khor said that the Tripartite Committee on Employability of Older Workers is launching an advertising campaign—entitled "Tap into a Wealth of Experience"—to highlight the value and experience that mature workers can bring to the workplace.

Sources: Ministry of Manpower Speeches (June 18, 2014); The Straits Times "$10,000 grant for bosses who try flexi-work schemes" (June 19, 2014)

Average Age of Disability Claims Rises to Above 50

The Council for Disability Awareness reports that, in 2013, the average claimant age exceeded 50 for the first time ever. Claims for those age 50 and older, mostly driven by claimants over age 60, have been consistently increasing as a percentage of the total, reflecting the aging of America's working population. According to its report, "2014 Long Term Disability Claims Review," 59% of the new claims approved during 2013 were for individuals age 50 or older. The Council also cites an aging workforce as one of the factors most cited by reporting companies as likely to impact future claim incidence.

In an article about the report for Bloomberg News, Craig Giammona writes that "Prudential Financial Inc. (PRU) and Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. (HIG) are among insurers that have raised prices for the coverage after being caught off guard by higher-than-expected claims costs." In addition, he quotes Council President Barry Lundquist as saying: "On average, older people have higher wages and it’s harder for them to get back to work.When you think about the baby boomers and how old they are now, they have a much higher chance of becoming disabled -- maybe a four or five times higher chance in a given year than someone that’s in their twenties or thirties.…When you think about the baby boomers and how old they are now, they have a much higher chance of becoming disabled—maybe a four or five times higher chance in a given year than someone that’s in their twenties or thirties."

Sources: Council for Disability Awareness News Release (June 17, 2014); Bloomberg News "Aging Workers Push Disability Costs Higher for Insurers" (June 17, 2014)

Survey: Americans Find Later Life without Work To Be Impractical and Undesirable

A survey conducted by Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management and Age Wave reports that 72% of pre-retirees over the age of 50 in the United States say their ideal retirement will include working. In addition, 47% of current retirees report having worked or planning to work during their retirement years.

According to the study ("Work in Retirement: Myths and Motivations"), whereas retirement used to be viewed as a permanent end of work followed by a period of continuous leisure, not retirement is better viewed as a phased process, which the authors call "The New Retirement Workscape" consisting of:

1. pre-retirement—for employees within five years of retirement, 37% have taken meaningful steps towards a retirement career, and within two years of retirement, 54% have done so;
2. career intermission—52% of retirees report they took a break, averaging 2.5 years, before working again;
3. reengagement—a period lasting around nine years, during which 83% of people working flex careers work part-time, as opposed to 17% in pre-retirement careers, and 32% are self-employed, as compared to 11% in pre-retirement careers; and
4. leisure.

The full survey report has been made available. Source: Merrill Lynch Global Wealth ManagementNews Release (June 4, 2014)

Research: Does Health Care Reform Affect Labor Participation by Older Workers?

In a blog posting on MarketWatch, Alicia H. Munnell follows up on research published by Center for Retirement Research at Boston College on the effects of Massachusetts’ health-insurance reform. According to Munnell, analysis "yielded an interesting result. It showed that, compared to nearby states, 55-to-64-year-old males in Massachusetts experienced the largest decline in labor force participation between the time before and after the health insurance reform." Specifically, the state Massachusetts saw a decline in labor force participation for that group of 1.3 percentage points while the rest of the nation saw an increase of 1.7 percentage points.

One possibility for the difference could be the ability of those men to acquire affordable health insurance without having to wait for Medicare. In support of this theory, Munnell notes that "prior to Massachusetts’ health reform, 93% of 55-to-64-year-old males who were out of the labor force had health insurance; after the reform that number had risen to 97%."

Munnell then contemplated extrapolating these results across the country, in light of the Affordable Care Act. She said that, "[i]f unhealthy workers—or people who simply hate their jobs—were able to leave the labor force because of expanded access to health insurance, economists argue that this reduction may not be a bad thing." However, "if health reform alters the financial incentives to work through higher marginal income taxes on labor, as some have argued will be the case under the ACA, then a reduction in labor force participation may be a negative outcome of health reform."

Source: MarketWatch "Will health reform affect older workers?" (June 11, 2014)

United Kingdom: Pension Minister Launches Action Plan To Help Older Workers Stay in the Workplace

The United Kingdom's Department for Work and Pensions and Pensions Minister Steve Webb has announced that the government will launch of a new action plan to support the economy, workers, and businesses, but stressed that British business must realize the potential of older workers and help people to stay in the workplace. Detailed in "Fuller Working Lives—a framework for action," the new measures include:

• extending the right to request flexible working to all employees in June 2014;
  
• the appointment of a new Older Workers’ Employment Champion—a respected and independent-minded figure who will advocate the case for older workers within the business community and wider society; and
  
• the launch of a new Health and Work Service which will give workers with long-term health problems the support they need to stay in or return to work.

According to the announcement, while the employment rate for 55 to 64 year olds is around 60% and growing, the recent improvement has been relatively modest compared to many other nations, and several countries achieve employment rates of around 70% or above. Among other things, Webb said:

• "Older workers have a huge amount to bring to any workforce and are a vast untapped talent."
  
• "We are living longer and can expect many more years of healthy life. It’s great news – but it’s something that as a society and as an economy we need to respond to."
  
• 'As part of building a fairer society, I am determined that we boost our support for older workers and help employers challenge outdated perceptions to see the real strengths of this important section of the workforce."
  

Source: Department for Work and Pensions and Steve Webb MP Press Release (June 13, 2014)

Other Sources: Daily Mail "Flexible hours push to help the over-50s stay in work: Pensions Minister says older generation are 'vast untapped talent'" (June 13, 2014)

Finland: Rising Age for Pre-Retirement Unemployment Benefits May Be Causing Increased Unemployment among Older Workers

As reported in Yle Uutiset, Statistics Finland has found that seniors facing a growing risk of unemployment as they age, and a "Tampere University researcher says the reason for the trend could be the constantly rising lower age limit for pre-retirement unemployment benefits."

Specifically, the data is showing that for men the risk of becoming jobless was greatest between the ages of 58 and 59, while for women the corresponding age was 58, while in 20023, the risk of unemployment was highest for men aged 55 and for women who were 56.

University of Tampere special researcher Simo Aho said that the steady risk in the risk age is due to ongoing rise in the age at which workers become eligible for additional earnings-related unemployment allowance. Currently persons who lose their jobs are eligible for the allowance from the age of 58 until retirement.

Source: Yle Uutiset "Unemployment risk growing among pre-retirement workers" (June 9, 2014)

Sweden: Looking at Retirement Age and Proposals to Strengthening Labor Participation by Older Workers

SeniorPolittik.no is running a series of articles on Sweden and retirement. According to the lead story, even though, under Swedish law, an individual has no right to remain in employment after age 67, and Swedes have the right to withdraw retirement pension as early as age 61, among both employers and employees it is a deeply rooted belief that the earlier retirement age of 65, the normal retirement age.

Swedes work longer than workers in many other countries, such as Denmark and Finland. However, labor force participation among Swedes aged 65 and older is generally not as high as in for example Norway. Labour force participation among older Swedish women, however, higher than in Norway. Nevertheless, politicians are worried and stressing among other things, that Norway has been more successful in changing attitudes away from a fixed retirement age.

Drawing on a report prepared for the Swedish parliament earlier in 2014, it is apparent that negative attitudes towards older workers is common. The report notes that Norway's creation of a center for senior policy is a cause of the attitudes in Norway being less negative, and it concluded that it is not enough just to raise the retirement age to change the perception of older workers. Information and knowledge are also needed.

While the Swedish report notes that "everyone can not work indefinitely, but many are able to work with and much longer than is the case now," there are proposals to raise the statutory right to continue in employment to 69. In addition, a year ago, proposals were submitted o the government to raise the age for the earliest opportunity to receive a pension from the government gradually from 61 years, on the grounds that life expectancy is projected to increase.

Sources: SeniorPolittik.no, Retirement Age in Sweden: "Mener Norge har lyktes bedre" [Believe Norway has succeeded better], "Fant sin egen vei videre" [Found their own way forward], "Bør være en menneskerett å få arbeide" [Should be a human right to work] (June 2014);

Israel: Government Drafting Proposal to Encourage Delayed Retirements

According to an article in Haaretz, the Israeli government is drafting a plan to encourage people to work past retirement age. As reported by Meirav Arlosoroff, the plan drafted by the Pensioner Affairs Ministry—led by minister Uri Orbach and ministry director general Gilad Semama—together with the National Economic Council in the Prime Minister’s Office would cost NIS 240 million ($69 million) a year, and would be funded by dropping the current pension increases offered to people who keep working beyond retirement age.

The number of retirement-age Israelis is set to reach nearly 15% by 2030, from 10% today, meaning the national expenditure on the elderly is likely to grow from the current 10.2% of GDP to nearly 12%, an increase of 16 billion shekels.

Surveys have shown that most people approaching pension age would like to continue working, but face barriers including discrimination, outdated skills and above all a taxation and state pension policy that serves as a strong disincentive.

In Israel, the retirement age is 62 for women and 67 for men. Currently, taxation and pension policies that essentially work out to a 97% income tax on some retirees who continue to work past retirement age, although those taxes are greatly reduced if someone works past 70. The proposal would cut the taxes and penalties for working to 44%-67% of the person’s salary.

In a follow-up article, Arlosoroff reports on a survey conducted by the business data firm BDI Coface for TheMarker, which revealed that only one in five workers hired by the 100 largest companies was over 45—revealing a picture of blatant discrimination based on pure prejudice:

Older job seekers are less likely than their younger peers to be hired, despite being perceived as more stable, experienced and capable of working longer hours because they don’t have small children at home.

These results echo findings of a survey conducted for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission by the Economy Ministry’s research division, which found that the hiring rate for employees aged 45 and up is just 1.3%, even though this group accounts for 38% of Israel’s labor force.

Source: Haaretz "Plan would reduce tax, pension penalties for working past retirement" (May 27, 2014); Haaretz "No country for old workers" (May 30, 2014)

Survey: Workers More Optimistic about Retirement, but More Contemplating Phased Retirement

The Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies® has released the results of its annual retirement survey, which found increased optimism among workers around the world about improvements in their local economies, but also noted that many workers envision some kind of phased transition into retirement. According to "The Changing Face of Retirement—The Aegon Retirement Readiness Survey (2014)," just 32% of workers surveyed plan to immediately stop working and fully retire. In the United States, this number is just 24%, while in European nations, which which have histories of compulsory retirement, workers are more likely to plan to stop immediately: for example, , 52% in Spain and 51% in France.

Employment and government policy reforms are needed to facilitate this new approach to retirement, yet change is not catching up with worker demand: only 23 percent of workers say their employers facilitate transitioning from full-time to part-time. Even fewer U.S. workers (21 percent) indicate their workplace policies accommodate the transition. In many cases, change in labor and pension laws, as well as a change in cultural norms, are needed to facilitate implementation of a phased retirement program.

The Aegon Retirement Readiness Survey 2014 is a collaboration between the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies and Aegon. The survey encompasses 16,000 employees and retirees in 15 countries, with separate country reports available for each of them: Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States. These countries were selected on the basis of their distinctive pension systems, as well as their varying demographic and aging trends.

Source: Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies® News Release (May 29, 2014)

Alaska: Department of Labor Outlines Status of Aging Workforce and Consequences of Increased Retirements

An article in the May 2014 issue of Alaska Economic Trends looks at the current composition of the state's workforce and jobs with high numbers of older workers in order to help identify occupations most likely to be affected by an increase in retirements. According to the report by Rob Krieger, from 2002 to 2012, there has been an increase in both the number and percentage of older workers in the state. In addition, this age group earns a much larger percentage of total wages than they did a decade ago. These trends are more significant in the public sector.

In looking at the jobs with the most older workers, the top occupations within state and local government include a number of technical and specialized positions, management and teaching jobs.

In the private sector, these occupations include a combination of highly skilled, highly technical, and top-level management positions. Physicians and surgeons, architectural and engineering managers, and chief executives topped this list…. What these occupations have in common is their requirement for extensive education and experience.

The article also points out that one major factor in determining the effects of vacancies will be the rate at which these workers retire, since not all who are eligible will retire at once, and some will remain working.

Source: Alaska Department of Labor "A Growing Number of Older Workers: Where upcoming retirements could come from" Alaska Economic Trends (May 2014)

Australia: Employment Discrimination against Older Workers on the Decline

The Financial Services Council has issued a report showing that discrimination towards older workers is on the decrease in Australia. According to "How Older Workers are Valued: Results of the National Survey on Attitudes to Older Workers," Australian employers are viewing older workers as a more reliable source of skills and experience despite pressures from the broader economy. In particular, the report finds that only 18% employees between 50 and 75 said they were discriminated against on the grounds of age, down from 28% a couple years ago.

Among other key findings in the report:

• 66% of older workers want to keep working regardless of their financial situation;
• 39% of older workers want more flexibility in hours and remuneration;
• 67% of older workers have been offered training or upskilling by their employers;
• 41% of older workers believe they should be paid more than younger employees based on their skills and knowledge, 43% said they should be paid about the same.

Source: Financial Services Council Media Release (April 28, 2014)

Australia: Study Finds Governments Not Doing Enough To Hire Older Workers

According to a study using Australian Bureau of Statistics and Census data, both federal and state governments in Australia lag well behind the private sector when it comes to employing older workers. In "Past, present and future of mature age labour force participation in Australia," the National Seniors Productive Ageing Centre highlights variations in rates of aging and mature age participation across the country.

National Seniors points in particular to a marked decline in the proportion of people aged 60 and over employed by governments, noting that around 16.4% of men aged 50 to 59 work across national, state and local bureaucracies, but this falls to 12.7% for men in their 60s, while women drop from 24.2% in their 50s to 20.1%. In contrast, private sector employment actually increases as people age.

According to National Seniors chief executive Michael O’Neill, “[t]he public service should represent the gold standard in hiring and retaining mature age staff. Instead, public servants aged over 60 are a rare breed across the country....When it comes to employing senior Australians, governments, both federal and state, get a big ‘F’”.

The report concludes that an aging workforce underscores the importance of addressing the barriers to mature age employment from age limits on workers compensation to discriminatory recruitment practices. In addition, the projected decline in the overall growth in labor supply over the next 30 years underscores the need for governments, industry and employers to recognize the importance of ongoing mature age participation.

Source: National Seniors Press Release (April 17, 2014)

EBRI Reports that Women are Driving Increased Labor Participation by Workers 55 and Over in the U.S.

According to an EBRI report, older workers (those 55 and older) are a growing presence in the U.S. work force, a trend
driven mainly by women. The April 2014 EBRI Notes—"Labor-force Participation Rates of the Population Ages 55 and Older, 2013"—finds that the labor-force participation rate for those ages 55 and older rose throughout the 1990s and into the 2000s, and that, for those aged 55–64, the upward trend was driven almost exclusively by the increased labor-force participation of women. For men, the participation rate was flat to declining. For workers 65 or older, participation rates increased for both men and women.

EBRI attributes the upward trend in labor-force participation to workers’ current need for continued access to employment-based health insurance, as well as for the need for more years of earnings to accumulate savings in defined contribution plans and/or to pay down debt. It also notes that "[m]any Americans also want to work longer, especially those with more education for whom more meaningful jobs are available that can be performed into older ages."

The EBRI report is less clear about how differing participation rates affect the generations. Thus, younger workers’ labor-force participation rates increased when that of older workers declined or remained low during the late 1970s to the early 1990s. However, as younger workers’ rates began to decline in the late 1990s, those for older workers continuously increased. "Consequently, it appears either that older workers filled the void left by younger workers’ lower participation, or that higher older-worker participation limited the opportunities for younger workers or discouraged them from participating in the labor force."

Source: EBRI Press Release (April 16, 2014)

Netherlands: OECD Report Calls for Greater Efforts Encouraging More People To Work Later in Life

The Netherlands must encourage more people to work later in life in order to help it meet its growing challenges of a rapidly aging population and rising social spending, according to the OECD. In its report "Ageing and Employment Policies: Netherlands 2014: Working Better with Age," the OECD says that while reforms over the past decade, such as raising the pension age, have already had an impact—so that the share of 55-64 year olds in work has increased significantly to just over 60% in 2013 (above the OECD average of 55%)—the Netherlands remains well behind the best OECD achievers, ranking only 16th for the employment rate of 55-64 year olds among the 34 OECD countries.

Among its recommendations, the OECD says the Netherlands should:

• promote longer contribution periods in second-pillar pension schemes and increase flexibility in withdrawal and combinations of pension and work to encourage longer careers;
  
• reduce the maximum duration of unemployment insurance benefits combined with better activation of all unemployment benefit recipients;
  
• keep replacement rates (the ratio of benefits to former earnings) of sickness and disability benefit well below 100%, and give access to wage-compensation already in the sickness benefit period for re-entry to new jobs with a lower wage;
  
• ensure that new practices among innovative firms in the Sustainable Employability program are promoted and progressively become national standards;
  
• mobilize more fully labor resources by supporting initiatives to facilitate working on a full-time basis for part-time workers.

Source: OECD News Release (April 16, 2014)

Update: Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment of the Netherlands Press Release (April 16, 2014)

Research: Governments Need To Restructure Deferred Retirement Plans To Encourage Retention of Employees

A University of Missouri researcher concluded has that states may need to restructure deferred retirement incentives to encourage more employees to remain on the job longer and minimize the disruption to government operations. Using, as a case study, the state of Missouri’s Deferred Retirement Option Provision (BackDROP), Angela Curl, assistant professor in the University of Missouri School of Social Work, looked at how the large numbers of possible retirees—in Missouri, more than 25% of all active state employees will be eligible to retire by 2016—threaten the continuity, membership and institutional histories of the state government workforce.

Curl said that a good system of employee retention is inclusive, flexible and accounts for the wide range of circumstances that retirement-eligible employees may consider when deciding to defer retirement. These circumstances could include caregiving for older parents or having a spouse who is retired. In Missouri, BackDROP offers a one-time payment equaling 90 percent of what employees would have received in benefits for an additional five years of service as incentive to delay retirement.

Curl said that “[e]mployers need to ask if their organizations are designed to promote turnover or promote retention. . . . States should recognize the benefits of promoting retention. Using delayed retirement incentives to encourage retention is important, particularly when dealing with older employees.”

A paper—“A case study of Missouri’s deferred retirement incentive for state employees”—co-authored by Kirsten Havig, will appear in the Journal of Aging and Social Policy`. Among other things, the study also found that social demographics such as race, sex, level of education and marital status did not play a significant role in an employee’s decision to defer retirement.

Sources: University of Missouri News Release (April 3, 2014); Columbia Business Times "MU researcher examines options for aging workforce" (April 8, 2014)

Survey: Tower Watson Shows More Workers Planning on Delaying Retirement Past 70

Tower Watson's annual survey of employee attitudes towards retirement finds that at workers are especially worried about the affordability of health care in retirement, and significant numbers have been forced to cut back on spending and plan to delay retirement, many until age 70 or later. According to Towers Watson’s 2013/2014 Global Benefit Attitudes Survey, while 46% of full-time employees are satisfied with their current finances—a sharp increase from 26% in 2009, 58% remain worried about their financial future. Employees’ confidence in their ability to retire has climbed with 23% very confident of their income sufficiency for the first 15 years of retirement. On the other hand, that confidence deteriorates when workers look farther ahead, with only 8% very confident of having adequate income 25 years into retirement.

With respect to delayed retirement, Tower Watson reports:

With many workers expecting to fall short on their retirement savings, nearly four in 10 plan on working longer. That’s an increase of nine percentage points since 2009. A large majority of these employees expect to delay retirement by three or more years, and 44% plan on a delay of five years or more. The profile of those delaying retirement tends toward the disengaged, less healthy and more stressed. These findings suggest a higher average retirement age in the future. In 2009, 31% of workers planned on retiring before 65, and 41% planned on retiring after 65. According to the 2013 survey, only 25% plan on retiring before 65, and half expect to retire after 65. One in three employees either does not expect to retire until after 70 or doesn’t plan to retire at all.

Tower Watson also notes that access to a defined benefit plan is a significant factor in employee attitudes: Workers without such access (and those in ill health) are consistently the most worried about their finances and retirement; workers with access to such plans are moderately more secure and more engaged in reviewing their savings, although even they continue to worry about possible changes to their plans and cuts to public programs.

Source: Tower Watson News Release (March 26, 2014)

Northern Ireland: Commissioner for Older People Urges Government and Employers To Increase Older Workers Participation in the Workforce

The Commissioner for Older People for Northern Ireland has released a report that shows that the economy in Northern Ireland could be increased by £2.3billion by 2037 if the number of older people in the workforce increases. According to "Valuing an Ageing Workforce," which was produced in conjunction with the International Longevity Centre-UK, the government and employers should introduce ways to enable older people to remain in the workforce for as long as they wish to. The Commissioner, Claire Keatinge, says:

"This shows that older workers can be more effective than their younger colleagues and make a positive contribution in the workplace, despite widely held misconceptions that somehow productivity and output diminish with age.

"Many people will want to stay in work, for a variety of reasons, such as the removal of the previous Default Retirement Age, increase in life expectancy, and for personal fulfillment; and some will stay in work because they need to for financial reasons.

"It is essential that appropriate supports are put in place so as to enable older workers to continue to be able to play a positive role in the workforce."

Among the findings reported by the Commissioner and highlighted in a briefing note to the report are:

1. Employers would benefit from valuing the positive role that older people play in the workplace.
2. Employment rates for older people in Northern Ireland have increased since the financial crisis in 2008 and there is a strong economic case for working beyond 65.
3. There are still a range of barriers which prevent people working longer, including ageist attitudes, health, caring responsibilities, skills and training opportunities, as well as the fact that ‘cliff-edge’ retirement is still a common occurrence here.
4. Initiatives should be introduced by the Northern Ireland
   Executive and employers to support people to work longer, should they wish to do so.
5. Older people in Northern Ireland should have the right to remain in work as well as the right to retire, and they should be supported in either scenario.
   

Source: Commissioner for Older People for Northern Ireland News Release (March 25, 2014)

AgeUK Literature Review Finds Someone’s Age Bears No Relation to Worker's Ability To Do Most Jobs

A literature review conducted by AgeUK reports that someone's age bears no relation to their ability or capability to perform the vast majority of jobs. Thus, AgeUK recommends that employers reconsider their existing workforce and HR strategies, and develop more effective retirement policies that place the wellbeing of their older employees at the heart of the process.

In its review, AgeUK finds, among other things that:

• The evidence shows either a lack of relationship between productivity and age, or that older workers are at least as productive as their younger colleagues. Even in physically
  demanding situations, for example on a factory production line, age is no barrier to working productively.
• Measuring individual productivity is challenging for researchers. Older studies, which often suggest older workers are less productive, frequently rely on outdated assumptions about aging and health, or fail to account for a myriad of other factors. More recent studies, which often find older workers are at least as productive as younger workers, are better able to account for these.
• As people age some cognitive and physical abilities do change—however, this does not
  make older workers better or worse than younger colleagues. There is no evidence of a substantive decline in ability in most people until well past the end of a typical working life. Aging affects everyone differently, and it is not possible to make predictions about any one individual’s capability.
• The interaction between skills, knowledge and experience means that many tasks can in fact be performed better as people age, and raises challenges for employers about how best to utilize individuals’ skills and abilities.
• Recognizing the challenges faced by older workers and offering solutions to mitigate them, for example flexible working to help people meet caring responsibilities, can help enhance individual productivity.

Source: AgeUK "Productivity and Age" (March 2014)

Australia: Superannuation Conference Hears about Research Findings on Involuntary Retirement and Gen Y Attitudes about Suuperannuation

The 2014 Conference of Major Superannuation Funds sponsored by the Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees (AIST) heard from a number of presenters about the confluence of retirement and an aging workforce. Among other things, conferees heard that:

• A more flexible approach to retirement may be needed to account for the significant minority of older Australians who are forced to leave the workforce early. According to a research report commissioned by AIST and prepared by the Australian Centre for Financial Studies (ACFS), up to 40% of older Australians could be classified as involuntary retirees. AIST CEO Tom "Garcia said more needed to be done to help older workers stay in the workforce longer so that they had a better chance of building their retirement savings before they reached old age. Equally, there needed to be recognition that those who retired early due to ill-health were often hit with additional health-related expenses that put pressure on their savings. See AIST media release, as well as presentation by Professor Deborah Ralston, Executive Director, ACFS, Professor of Finance, Monash University on "Involuntary Retirement: Characteristics and
  Implications"
• Research commissioned by AIST suggests that many Gen Y’s have a realistic idea of how much money they need to retire, what the Age Pension will supplement and how they want to use their money at retirement time. However, they lack the knowledge and education to understand more. See AIST media release and presentation by Michelle Tustin, Research Director, Colmar Brunton, on "Gen Y: The Messaging Wars"
  

Source: Australian Institute of Superannuation Trustees CMSF2014 Presentations (March 2014)

Age and the Technology Sector: Noam Scheiber Calls Out the "Brutality" of Ageism

In a lengthy article in The New Republic by Noam Scheiber writes about how "Silicon Valley has become one of the most ageist places in America." According to Scheiber, "tech luminaries who otherwise pride themselves on their dedication to meritocracy don’t think twice about deriding the not-actually-old." As he said on NPR: "On the engineering side, 35 really starts to be considered quite old. The computer languages change so quickly that people are quickly perceived to be out of date. On the entrepreneur side, people value experience a little more but there, even 40 and over tends to be perceived as quite old."

When taken to its logical extreme, a tech sector that discriminates in favor of the young might produce an economy with some revolutionary ways of keeping ourselves entertained and in touch at all hours of the day and night. But it would be an economy that shortchanged other essential sectors, like, say, biotech or health care.

Source: The New Republic "The Brutal Ageism of Tech: Years of experience, plenty of talent, completely obsolete
" (March 23, 2014)

Other sources: NPR All Things Considered "Weaned On Youth, Silicon Valley Keeps Older Workers On Sidelines" (March 24, 2014); CNBC "How Silicon Valley discriminates against older workers...to its own peril"; BigThink "The Brutal Ageism of Silicon Valley"

Nevada: AARP Surveys Opinions about Discrimination against Older Workers

AARP has released the results of a survey of older voters in Nevada designed to determine public views on older workers, age discrimination, and the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act (POWADA). According to "Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act: A Survey of Nevada Voters Ages 50+ (POWADA)," over one-third of older voters report that they or someone they know has recently experienced age discrimination in the workplace, and 89% say it is important for Congress to take action and restore workplace protections against age discrimination.

In addition, 92% of those surveyed agree that the high cost of gas, health care, food, and housing requires many Americans to work longer in order to rebuild their retirement savings, with 78% strongly agreeing. Also, 90% agree that older Americans are putting off retirement either to make ends meet or to save money for retirement.

AARP's survey followed on a 2012 survey of older voters in Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Tennessee.

Source: AARP Press Release (March 2014)

EBRI Retirement Confidence Survey Finds

According to the 24th annual Retirement Confidence Survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI), Americans’ confidence in their ability to afford a comfortable retirement has recovered somewhat from the record lows of the past five years, but it does not appear to be founded on improved retirement preparations. In fact, "The 2014 Retirement Confidence Survey: Confidence Rebounds—for Those With Retirement Plans" (Issue Brief No. 397) suggests that the improvement may be limited to those with retirement plans.

In the aggregate, reported worker savings remain low, and only a minority appear to be taking basic steps
to prepare for retirement. Nearly half of workers without a retirement plan were not at all confident about their financial security in retirement, compared with only about 1 in 10 with a plan.

Among EBRI's other findings:

• The increase in confidence between 2013 and 2014 occurred primarily among those with a plan (an increase from 14% very confident in 2013 to 24% in 2014 for those with a plan, compared with level readings among those without a plan (10% very confident in 2013 and 9% in 2014).
• The percentage of workers planning to work for pay in retirement now stands at 65%, compared with just 27% of retirees who report they work for pay in retirement.
• Only 44% report they and/or their spouse have tried to calculate how much money they will need to have saved by the time they retire so that they can live comfortably in retirement, a level that has held relatively consistent over the past decade.

Source: EBRI Press Release (March 18, 2014)

United Kingdom: TUC Report Finds Women Over 50 Face Rigid Workplace

Following an investigation by the Trade Union Congress (TUC) into issues facing women over 50 at work, the TUC finds that a rigid workplace culture is making it difficult for older women to balance their careers with caring responsibilities, leading to decades of low pay at the end of their working lives and poverty in retirement. According to "Age Immaterial: Women over 50 in the Workplace," while a record number of older women are in work, many are trapped in low-paid jobs and are struggling to balance caring responsibilities with work. Among other things, the report finds that:

• the gender pay gap for women over 50 working full-time is twice as high as it is for younger women, with nearly half of women over 50 being in part-time work, where the average annual wage is under £10,000 a year.;
• 49% care for at least one of their own parents, while 39% are caring for their own children. In addition, 21% look after their grandchildren, while 13% also care for another elderly relative, and 9% care for a disabled husband, wife or partner; and
• with the majority of women aged 50-64 employed in public administration, education and health, the threat of redundancy is a major concern, especially as the public sector is set to lose 1.1 million jobs by 2018-19.

The TUC report calls on employers to have a more enlightened attitude to these caring responsibilities. Among other things, the report calls for the introduction of several new rights, including (1) five to ten days of paid carers’ leave per year; (2) unpaid leave entitlement, similar to parental leave, specifically for grandparents, and (3) statutory adjustment leave for sudden changes to caring responsibilities and crisis situations.

Source: Trade Union Congress Media Release (February 27, 2014)

United Kingdom: Study Calls for Upping Retirement Age, Saying Pension System Creates Incentives for Early Retirement

A report issued by the Institute of Economic Affairs says that recent United Kingdom government commitments to continue to increase state pension expenditure in real terms are both unaffordable and irresponsible, and that the government must accelerate the introduction of a later retirement age and urgently reform labor market regulations to enable people to work longer.

According to "Income from Work—The Fourth Pillar of Income Provision in Old Age" by Gabriel Sahlgren, the current state pension system is "incentivising" early retirement, and that employment protection legislation raises unemployment at older ages, including before state pension age. Furthermore, later retirement benefits the individual through improved health and higher incomes, and benefits taxpayers by reducing the costs of ageing populations.

The report makes ten recommendations to "ease the state pension time bomb," including:

• accelerating the rise in retirement age, suggesting that, from November 2018, the state pension age for men and women should increase by two months every quarter, which would get the pension age to 68 by January 2023;
  
• linking retirement with life expectancy from January 2023;
  
• exempting older workers from employment protection legislation, which would encourage employers to take on older workers and also enable greater labor mobility and flexible working patterns; and
  
• introducing a pilot scheme to exempt older workers from age discrimination laws.

Source: Institute of Economic Affairs Press Release (January 8, 2014)

Reaction: "Actuaries Buck Consultants have disagreed with the ‘dramatic’ rise in state pension age proposed by the Institute of Economic Affairs, saying changes must be balanced to protect those close to retirement." See The Actuary (January 14, 2014)

Research Published on Relationship in United States of Education and Wages Among Older Employees

The Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) reports that research it has conducted finds that higher education pays off for women and men for all ages 50 and older, including for the oldest group studied, those 75 and older. According to "How Education Pays Off for Older Americans," by Heidi Hartmann, Ph.D., and Jeff Hayes, Ph.D., those with higher levels of education—meaning those with at least some education beyond high school—work more at older ages and earn more per hour at older ages, relative to those with less education. However, women earn less at every age and education level than men, and often earn about the same as men who are at the educational level below them.

Among other things, the report finds that:

• Estimated earnings of older Americans age 65 until their eventual retirement are three to almost five times higher for those with advanced degrees compared to those with only high school or less (and two to almost three times higher for those with Bachelor’s degrees).
• The largest occupations for older women and men reveal considerable gender differences. Not only is there little overlap in the largest occupations for men and women aged 50 and older—only retail salespersons appear in the women’s and men’s lists of their ten largest occupations—but the occupations in which older men work pay more.
• For those aged 75 and older, several very high wage occupations are among the most common for men: physicians and surgeons (at $64.54 per hour), lawyers and judges (at $59.13 per hour), and chief executives and legislators (at $48.00 per hour). For older women of the same age group, the highest paying occupation in the top ten list is secretary and receptionist at $15.37 per hour.

Source: Institute for Women's Policy Research Press Release (January 2, 2014)

BLS Finds Older Workers Have Less Severe Injuries, but Miss More Work Days for Recovery

According to an analysis of data by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, older workers are less likely to have severe work injuries, but they miss more work days to recover. Specifically, while the overall rate of nonfatal occupational injuries and illnesses requiring days away from work to recuperate was 112 cases per 10,000 full-time workers in 2012, down from 117 cases in 2011, and the median days away from work—a key measure of severity of injuries and illnesses was 9 days in 2012, workers aged 65 and older had the lowest incidence rate at 89 cases per 10,000 full-time workers, but they required the longest time away from work to recover: a median of 14 days.

Drawing on BLS's "Nonfatal Occupational Injuries and Illnesses Requiring Days away from Work, 2012," it was also reported that workers ages 45 to 54 had the most cases of injuries and illnesses of any age group, with 293,700 cases in 2012, and had the highest incidence rate--121.7 cases per 10,000 full-time workers. Their median days away from work for these workers to recover was 11 days.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics TED: The Editor's Desk (December 30, 2013)

Connecticut: Legislative Panel Issues Report on Reemployment Challenges of Older Workers

The Connecticut General Assembly's Office of Program Review and Investigations has issued its finding from its study of the challenges facing older unemployed workers (ages 50 and older), including the competing demands to have an income while completing needed job-related training. According to the "Staff Findings and Recommendations Highlights," there are many programs and services to assist with the reemployment of unemployed workers, including older workers, but that only a few programs are specifically for older adults. Accordingly, "there is no comprehensive, easily accessible way for unemployed residents to find out about these resources." Looking at existing programs overall, programs with an on-the-job-training component had a higher reemployment rate of 74% compared with 50% for programs without the component.

The report made several recommendations, including:

• Prohibit potential employers from publishing job vacancy advertisements that discriminate against the long-term unemployed.
• Develop summary sheets and informational campaigns to inform job seekers of the resources available, address misperceptions about the state's apprenticeship program, and publicize the advantages of hiring older workers.
• The CTWorks Career Centers should consider requirement of a professional resume writer credential and expansion of online learning.

In addition to the report highlights, the full report, as well as an executive summary, are available online. The report has been welcomed by the House Chair of the Program Review and Investigations Committee. Source: Office of Program Review and Investigations Studies: Reemployment of Older Workers (December 18, 2013)

Brookings Issues Report on Retirement Trends in 20 Industrialized Countries: Recession Accelerating Delayed Retirements

A report from the Brookings Institution finds that since Great Recession, the trend toward later retirement in industrialized countries has not only continued, but has accelerated. According to "Impact of the Great Recession on Retirement Trends in Industrialized Countries," by Gary Burtless and Barry Bosworth, when the recession began most rich countries were experiencing an increase in labor force participation rates after age 60. In their paper, they examined whether the downturn slowed or reversed the trend toward higher old-age participation rates, using straightforward time series analysis to test for a break in labor force trends after 2007.

Averaging across all 20 countries in our sample, the pace of labor force participation gains has accelerated since the onset of the Great Recession. As noted, the participation rate of 60-64 year-olds increased at an average rate of 0.4 percentage points a year between 1989 and 2007. Between 2007 and 2012 the participation rate in this age group increased an average of 1.5 percentage points a year. In 12 of the 20 countries, the increase in the trend rate of participation change was statistically significant. The participation rate of 65-69 year-olds increased at an average rate of 0.1 percentage points a year between 1989 and 2007. Since 2007 the participation rate in this age group has increased an average of 0.8 percentage points a year across the sample countries. In 13 of the 20 countries, the rise in the trend rate of participation gain was statistically significant. In the oldest age group, 70-74 year-olds, the trend rate of increase in participation rose from 0.05 percentage points a year between 1989 and 2007 to 0.32 percentage points a year after 2007. In 12 of the 19 sample countries the increase in the pace of participation gain among 70-74 year-olds was statistically significant.

While countries that experienced unusually severe downturns, including Ireland and much of southern Europe, represent exceptions to this generalization, the authors conclude that, on the whole, however, the trend toward later retirement in rich countries has not been reversed as a result of the Great Recession.

According to Robert Samuelson, this study suggests that the "We may be witnessing the last gasp of early retirement" and not just in the United States.

Source: Brookings Institution Paper (December 16, 2013)

United Kingdom: Survey Finds Older Workers Embracing New Careers, Entrepreneurship

A survey sponsored by Scottish Widows has found that 49% of the United Kingdom’s retirees are sparking a retirement revolution by transforming the end of their working lives, with almost one in 10 (8%) choosing to change careers and one in 20 starting their own business. In addition, the survey reports that 30% of working Britons planning to reinvent their careers when they retire, either by starting a new career, setting up a new business, or becoming a consultant.

With respect to retirement expectations, while 71% of retirees surveyed retired around or earlier than the age they expected, 54% of workers over 50 say they will retire later than they initially expected when starting out their career, with 21% believing that they will retire over the age of 70.

According to Wendy Loretto, Professor of Organisational Behaviour, University of Edinburgh Business School, who worked with Scottish Widows on the study: "As our society adapts to an ageing population, the way we perceive and plan for retirement has had to evolve. The reality is that we are not all able to stop working at 65, and this is likely to become even later in the future. With this in mind, people are adopting a new attitude towards this life stage and are starting to view working later in life as a positive opportunity rather than a burden."

Source: Scottish Widows News Release (December 10, 2013)

Utilities Industry Facing Workforce Changes with Generational Shift

According to a new report, workforce changes are re-shaping the risk profiles of power and utilities companies, which may require a systematic approach to help attract and retain core know-how, and transfer industry knowledge to a younger generation. The report--"Power and utilities changing workforce: Keeping the lights on"--from Price Waterhouse Cooper's Power & Utilities Group, finds that, among other things, an accelerated pace at which utilities are losing key workers. For example, the "voluntary turnover rate climbed by a full percentage point between 2010 and 2012, and for high performers and early tenured employees the rate of separation was especially high."

PWC suggests that, while other industries are used to high turnover, the relatively stable utilities industry may now have to rethink both their approach to process and their employee value proposition as they confront the industry's turnover issues:

[T]raditional "word-of-mouth," on-the-job training of utility workers is not sustainable. More than ever before, work processes and procedures should be documented and continuously improved. Explicit governance and controls procedures should be put in place and sustained. Moreover, focused and efficient knowledge transfer and succession planning approaches should align with the operational imperatives of the company.

The report suggests that utility companies have been able to postpone this day of reckoning, since the recession had either forced employees to delay retirement or stay in place as contractors. However, since veteran utilities workers have had the tendency to retain valuable institutional knowledge in their heads and to pass it on orally, this knowledge will be lost as the attractiveness of pensions plans draws this workers away from employment.

The report then outlines questions that utility companies must ask themselves about, and outlines approaches to take with respect to, three areas: (1) knowledge retention and succession planning, (2) operations, and (3) Technology and processes.

Source: Price Waterhouse Coopers Summary (December 2013)

New Zealand: Report Calls for Employers To Adapt Workplace Policies for Older Workers

A report issued by BusinessNZ, Southern Cross Healthcare Group, and Gallagher Bassett is telling New Zealand employers that they will be increasingly reliant on older workers to remain in the labor market in coming years, and that these workers will increasingly require arrangements such as reduced hours of work, flexibility in working time, lighter duties and a degree of focus on transition to retirement. In "Wellness in the Workplace," it is reported that "only 12.6% of businesses have policies or arrangements in place for older employees. Even when results were broken down by broad size of business, there was no significant change in the overall result."

"Of those business that do have some form of arrangement in place, comments typically revolved around reduced hours of work, flexibility in working time, lighter duties and a degree of focus on transition to retirement." According to Phil O’Reilly, BusinessNZ Chief Executive, just because workers are nearing retirement age doesn’t necessarily mean an employee wants to give up work. "It comes down to understanding the external pressures your staff are under. We’ve come a long way in talking about work-life balance for parents, however older workers have equally important reasons for needing flexibility--they may have health issues to contend with, need to care for older parents or, increasingly, take on caring for grandchildren so the parents can return to paid work."

Source: Southern Cross Healthcare Group News Release (December 16, 2013)

United Kingdom: Government Announces Acceleration in Increase of Pension Age

In his Autumn 2013 speech to Parliament, the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced, among other things, that the state pension age must continue to track life expectancy. While exact dates are to be determined, increases to pension ages of 68 and 69 would be accelerated. The full statement from the speech follows:

But we also have to guarantee that the basic state pension is affordable in the future, even as people live longer and our society grows older.

The only way to do that is to ensure the pension age keeps track with life expectancy.

The Pensions Bill, currently going through Parliament, puts in place reviews of the pension age every five years.

Now we set the principle that will underpin those reviews.

We think a fair principle is that, as now, people should expect to spend up to a third of their adult life in retirement.

Based on latest life expectancy figures, applying that principle would mean an increase in the state pension age to 68 in the mid 2030s and to 69 in the late 2040s.

The exact dates will be set by the future statutory reviews and in line with the most up to date demographic data, of which the next update is published next week.

A Background Note from the Department of Work and Pensions on the principles underlying this approach states that the United Kingdom "has decided to use the age of 20 as the appropriate starting age for the purpose of calculating the proportion of adult life spent in receipt" of a state pension, and that the government is currently legislating for a review of the pension age to take place once in every Parliament.

Sources: Gov.UK "Chancellor George Osborne's Autumn Statement 2013 speech" (December 5, 2013); Department of Work and Pensions Background Note (December 5, 2013)

Germany: Study Reports on Professions with Oldest Workforces

A study has been published in Germany identifying which professions are most affected by the German demographics--those with a higher population of over 65's compared to the under 35's. According to "Berufe im Demografischen Wandel," by the Geschäftsstelle der Initiative Neue Qualität der Arbeit (INQA) sponsored by the Bundesanstalt für Arbeitsschutz und Arbeitsmedizin (BAuA), the most affected professions are:

• chemical plant workers, and operators of metal cutting machines (Manufacturing Professions);
• electrical engineers, industrial engineers, chemists and chemical engineers, physicists, mathematicians, and physics engineers (Engineering and MINT Professions);
• nurses, nursing assistants, midwives, educators, and child care workers (Healthcare Professions); and
• bankers, and bookkeepers (Business/Commercial Professions).

In all four investigated occupational groups, according to the reprot, between the years 1993 and 2011, the proportion of employees who are older than 55 years increased. Part of it had more than doubled. 

See BAuA's website for other information about demographics and working in Germany. Also, see the University of Rostock's Work and Age Project.

Sources: Mkenya Ujermani "Professions with an Aging Workforce in Germany" (November 18, 2013); Wirtschafts Woche "Demografischer Wandel trifft manche Berufe besonders hart" (October 24, 2013); INQA Press Release (October 24, 2013)

Malaysia: Research Finds Older Workers are Competent, Performing Well and Are Trainable

In an article published in Employee Relations, Junaidah Hashim and Saodah Wok, both from the International Islamic University Malaysia, report on their investigation of the competence, performance and trainability of older workers of higher educational institutions in Malaysia. According to "Competence, Performance and Trainability of Older Workers of Higher Educational Institutions in Malaysia," based on the assessments made by the older workers themselves and their superiors, older workers are competent, performing well and are trainable. However, the administrative older staff were rated lower by the superior as compared to the academic older staff.

The authors suggest that "the study provides valuable insights into considering of revising the retirement age of academician in higher education sector even higher. Age seems to be an advantage to this group of employees."

Source: Employee Relations Journal Abstract (2013)

Italy: Employers Encouraging Older Workers To Retire Early to Provide Employment

According to a report from BBC News, employers, with government support, are providing incentives to older workers to retire early to help reduce youth unemployment.



Source: BBC News "Older workers in Italy encouraged to hand over to young" (October 30, 2013)

Additional sources: New York Times "Italy: The Nation That Crushes Its Young" (October 30, 2013); Wall St. Journal "'Mancession' Pushes Italian Women Back Into Workforce" (October 30, 2013)

Report: Recession Has Significant Effect on Retirement Plans of Older Americans

The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research has issued a report with the results of a survey exploring the views of older Americans about their plans for work and retirement. Among other things, "Working Longer: Older Americans' Attitudes on Work and Retirement" finds that:

• the average age of those who report retiring before the recession was 57 while the average for those who retired afterward is 62;
  
• 82% of Americans age 50 and older who are working but not yet retired saying it is likely or very likely that they will do some work for pay during their retirement;
  
• of those who are currently working, 47% now plan to retire at a later age than they expected when they were 40; and
  
• 20% of working Americans age 50 and older report that they have personally experienced prejudice or discrimination because of their age in the job market or at work since
  turning 50, and 44% of those who experienced discrimination have looked for a job in the past five years compared with 16% of those who did not report discrimination.
  

Additional information, including the Associated Press stories based on the results of this national survey of 1,024 adults ages 50 and over and the survey’s complete topline findings can be found on the AP-NORC Center’s website. Source: Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research Press Release (October 14, 2013)

Europe: Report Calls on EU and Member States To Maximise the Potential of Older Workers

The International Longevity Centre–UK (ILC-UK) has issued a report exploring how the European Union and its 28 members have responded to the working longer agenda. The report--"Working Longer: An EU perspective"--argues that older people have not been exempt from the impact of the recession, and that governments should put extra resource into tackling ageism and creating the right sort of jobs for an older workforce.

Among other things, the report highlights that:

• Europe faces significant skills gaps due to demographic change.
• EU Membership has gone alongside growth in participation of older workers.
• Across Europe, incentives to retire early have gradually been removed, whilst state pension ages have begun to increase.
• Government initiatives to support older workers are often poorly evaluated for effectiveness.
• Governments have not met an EU target set in 2001 to achieve 50% employment rate of older workers by 2010.

The report explores seven challenges for the EU and Member States:

1. Achieving gender equality.
2. Skilling up the older workforce.
3. Supporting older people in the recession.
4. Matching demand and supply in the labour market.
5. Tackling ageism.
6. Improving health. One of the biggest challenges facing the working longer agenda is poor health of older workers.
7. Recognising the diversity of the working experience.

The report argues that European decision-makers and member states should take a life course approach, make better use fiscal incentives, create more, better and more appropriate jobs, address inequalities, and deliver a targeted research agenda. Source: International Longevity Centre Press Release (September 4, 2013)

United Kingdom: Study Shows Older Workers Are as Productive as Younger Counterparts

According to research released by AgeUK, despite assumptions made by many employers, older workers are motivated and willing to work as flexibly as younger workers. The research investigating the evidence behind common perceptions about older workers was carried out by Essex Business School, University of Essex.

Among other things, the review found that, while there was evidence of decline in some physical attributes in some, but not all, older workers, there was little sign of a decline in overall productivity because older workers compensated with skills and experience. Furthermore, while there is evidence to suggest that while younger people might be typically faster at carrying out repetitive tasks, older people are often faster at carrying out complex tasks that allow them to draw on their contextual knowledge and years of work experience.

Dr Kathleen Riach, Reader in Management at Essex Business School who carried out the study said, ‘Our review found that stereotyped perceptions about older workers don’t stand up to scrutiny.

'Our work indicates that age doesn’t determine a person’s commitment and productivity levels at work. Other socioeconomic and psychological factors are much better indicators of the way older people behave.’

Source: AgeUK Press Release (August 28, 2013)

Norway: OECD Issues First Country Report on Encouraging Labor Participation by Older Workers

The OECD, as part of its aging and employment policies program to review of policies to encourage greater labor market participation at an older age by fostering employability, job mobility, and labor demand, has issued its first country report. In "Ageing and Employment Policies: Norway 2013. Working Better with Age," the OECD finds that Norway is better placed to cope with population ageing than most other countries, but that it could still do more to improve incentives and opportunities for people to stay working longer which would help ensure the country’s long-term future.

According to the report, Norway has the fourth-highest employment rate for the age group 55-64 in the OECD area, at 71% in 2012, but Norway’s labor market has a large share of older people on disability benefit: 19.6% of those aged 55-59 in the first quarter of 2012, and 30.5% of those aged 60-64. Among other things, (1) old age pensions for disabled people are to a large extent calculated as they were in the former pension system, and economic incentives to work are not much changed for public sector employees, (2) there is not enough consistency in the setting of age limits in the accrual of additional pension rights, employment protection legislation and other rules concerning mandatory retirement, and (3) even if most older workers in Norway are in stable and high-quality jobs, they experience a very low hiring rate, one-third of the OECD average.

The report recommends that Norway:

• align second-pillar pension schemes for public sector employees with the main principles of the reformed national insurance scheme;
• strengthen gate keeping to the disability scheme, in order to reduce inflows;
• ensure greater age neutrality in employers’ personnel decisions, starting with the hiring process. An objective could be for the hiring rate of older workers in Norway to reach the OECD average;
• simplify and co-ordinate age limit rules, with a view to removing age as a mandatory reason for retirement;
• Ensure that the legislative and organisational framework is neutral with regard to part-time and full-time jobs, and support initiatives to promote a “full-time culture”.

Source: OECD Press Release (June 21, 2013)

SHRM and AARP Announce 2013's Best Employers for Workers over 50

National Institutes of Health (NIH) has been announced as the top honoree in the 2013 search for the AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50, cosponsored by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). The awards spotlight employers that have implemented programs that help retain, retrain, engage and recruit mature workers, and, among other things, NIH exemplifies the awards goals by providing generous health benefits and a “Fit Plus Program” that strongly supports the needs of employees 50 and over who are beginning or maintaining a fitness program. In addition, full-time employees are eligible to move to part-time work on a permanent or temporary basis.

Scripps Health of Southern California, the 2012 winner, and the 2013 runner-up, offers a number of alternative work arrangements, including a phased retirement program. Employees have an opportunity to gain new experience by working on temporary assignments in other departments, on team projects, and by having access to formal job rotation and mentoring programs. In addition, Scripps employees are able to take advantage of strong health benefits, and wellness-related benefits are used by more than two-thirds of the staff, including flu shots, health screenings, health risk appraisals, smoking cessation programs, health club discounts, physical activity and weight loss programs, on-site massages, and stress management training.

See AARP's website for a full list of the 50 winners, as well as links to descriptions of the employment practices and benefits that garnered their recognition.

Source: SHRM Press Release (June 17, 2013)

PBS News Hour: Special Report on New Adventures for Older Workers

PBS News Hour has spent a year looking at the factors—demography, economics and just plain personal preference—that help explain what's happening to the American workforce as it ages. In a special project, "Special Report on New Adventures for Older Workers," led by David Pelcyger and Elizabeth Shell, PBS has provided a series of stories listed under Sources below, and an interactive web pages on a snapshot on what getting older is likely to cost one, working for the nest egg, working in retirement, and moving forward.

Sources: PBS News Hour "Without Money to Retire, Paramedic Must Stay Healthy to Keep Working" (June 14, 2013); "Heading Back to Work After Retiring" (June 13, 2013); "America's New Old Workforce: When Your Body Tells You It's Time to Retire" (June 10, 2013); "Will You Work Forever" (June 7, 2013)

Oregon: Aging Workforce Major Factor in Declining Labor Participation Rates

According to a report from the Oregon Employment Department's Workforce and Economic Research Division, the state's share of the population 16 years old and over that is employed or unemployed has fallen to the lowest level since the late 1970s. "Oregon’s Falling Labor Force Participation: A Story of Baby Boomers, Youth, and the Great Recession" explores the three major reasons for falling participation: the aging workforce, younger workers declining population, and the results of the Great Recession.

The report finds that Oregon’s labor force participation rate is at its lowest level since records began in 1976. Specifically, the state’s labor force participation rate peaked at 68.9% in 1998 and declined to 63.4% in 2012. Fully half of this decline can be attributed to the aging population--the movement of Oregon’s population into older age groups accounts for 3.2 percentage points of the overall drop. "In other words, the aging of the population into age groups with lower participation rates brings the overall rate down, even as participation rates in the older groups are on the rise."

With regards to the rise in participation rates of older workers, the report states:

Falling participation rates is not the story for every age group. Labor force participation has been on the rise for people aged 55 to 64 since 1986 (Graph 3). A number of factors are driving this trend. One factor has been improvements in health that allow workers to continue in the labor force longer than workers of past generations. A second factor has been the shift towards a service economy and away from a manufacturing economy. The shift resulted in less labor intensive “blue collar” jobs and more “white collar” jobs that are less physically demanding. A third factor is that workers have to work longer to build savings for retirement due to the move away from defined-benefit pensions and towards 401K plans. Dramatic financial market swings in recent years provide an additional challenge to older workers trying to determine if they have built up sufficient savings to retire.

Among other things, the report also poses the question whether it is time to change thinking that ages 25 to 54 are "prime working age." The report also states that while "Regions and industries with a large proportion of older workers may face a relative shortage of workers as more baby boomers reach retirement age," "there are enough younger people and their participation rates are far enough below historic averages that there should be enough replacement workers if they are given appropriate training and offered sufficient job opportunities."

Source: Oregon Employment Department Reports & Analysis (June 12, 2013)

Research: Older Workers are Not Bringing Down Average Wages, Help Workforce Producitivity

According to research from The Brookings Institution, an aging workforce had not dragged down average worker productivity over the past quarter century in the United States. Instead, Gary Burtless, Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, reports in "The Impact of Population Aging and Delayed Retirement on Workforce Productivity," that improved education among the population past 60 and delays in retirement among better educated Americans have tended to boost the earnings of older workers compared with younger ones.

Using one standard benchmark of individual worker productivity—hourly wages—workers between 60 and 74 now earn more than an average worker who is between 25 and 59. The hourly pay premium for older men was about 22 percent in 2011. For older women it was about 10 percent. Other earnings benchmarks show a somewhat less favorable picture, but all of them show considerable improvement in the relative position of aged workers compared with the nonaged over the past two decades. None of the indicators of male productivity suggest that older male workers are less productive than average male workers who are between 25 and 59.

Burtless points to two factors for the surge in older workers’ earnings: (1) the sheer size of the baby boom generation means that the number of Americans attaining age 60 each year is climbing steeply; and (2) labor force participation rates of adults between 60 and 74 have increased.

Burtless also notes that a major reason for the surge in income is that older workers are now better educated compared with prime-age workers than was the case in the past. "Twenty-five years ago the gap in education between prime-age workers and older Americans was large. Americans past 60 had much less schooling than workers who were younger. That gap is now much narrower."

Source: The Brookings Institution UpFront Blog Post (June 10, 2013)

Australia: Commission Report Calls for Addressing Barriers to Labor Force Participation by Mature Age People

The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) released the final report for its inquiry into legal barriers to older persons participating in the workforce and other productive work. In "Access All Ages—Older Workers and Commonwealth Laws," ALRC makes 36 recommendations that address the areas of recruitment and employment, work, health and safety, workers’ compensation, insurance, social security, and superannuation, with the keystone recommendation being for a National Mature Age Workforce Participation Plan to provide a coordinated policy response to address barriers to participation by mature age people in the Australian labor market.

The ALRC considers that the Report’s recommendations, taken together, will provide:

• a coordinated policy response to enabling mature age workforce participation;
• consistency across Commonwealth laws and between Commonwealth and state and territory laws to support mature age workforce participation;
• a reduction in age discrimination;
  a greater awareness of mature age workers’ rights and entitlements;
• support for maintaining attachment to the workforce for mature age people; and
• work environments, practices and processes that are appropriate for mature age workers.

In its response, National Seniors welcomes the report and many of its recommendations, but believes that the report does not got far enough. National Seniors argues that all age restrictions for workers compensation and superannuation should be repealed. Sources: Australian Law Reform Commission Media Release (May 30, 2013); National Seniors Media Release (May 30, 2013)

Australia: Research Finds Organizations Failing To Harness Skills and Talents of Older Women in Workforce

Diversity Council Australia, in partnership with the Australian Human Rights Commission and with Sageco, has released research results about how underutilized older women—those 45 and older—really are and what employers can do to better harness their skills and talents for the benefit of business and the wider economy. According to "Older Women Matter: Harnessing the Talents of Australia’s Older Female Workforce," Australia’s older female workforce represent a sizeable and growing segment of the labor force but that Australian organizations are failing to harness their skills and talents. Furthermore, Australia’s performance in this area lags substantially behind comparable countries, such as New Zealand.

Among other things, the research finds that:

• older women constitute 17% of Australia’s workforce with 45% of women aged 45 and over now in the labor force compared to 24% in 1978;
• older women’s participation in the labor market is substantially lower than men’s in all age groups—as much as 17 points lower for women aged 55-64;
• the most recent comparable data shows participation rates for Australian women aged 55-64 of 54.9% compared to 72% in Sweden, 69.8% in New Zealand, 59.5% in the US and 57.4% in Canada; and
• employers can reap significant benefits if they review their attraction, retention, transition and flexible working strategies with older women in mind.

Source: Diversity Council Australia Media Alert (May 23, 2013)