Survey: Older Workers More Secure in Roles, Less Confident in Their Orgnaizations

In its 2011 Global Mindset Index, rogenSI reports that "workers are confused and uncertain about where their organisations are heading and rather than being innovative and forward thinking in their roles are instead playing it safe and holding on for all they’re worth as a renewed sense of uncertainty ripples across the globe." With respect to workers 50 and over, the report finds that the older a worker gets, the less confidence the worker has in his organization and where it’s going, but the more stable the worker feels in his role.

What is clear is that older workers are not lacking in confidence in their own abilities - they are, however, feeling unsure about their organisations’ prospects. It would seem as though their experience in the workforce has taught them to see the future a little more clearer than their younger colleagues — they know the warning signs of what’s to come because they have seen it all before.

rogenSI suggests that, left unattended, this can be a concern for organizations. In particular, this degree of malcontent can result in an inability to retain key staff. Thus, it is important to continue to provide feedback, support and guidance. Otherwise, costs associated with recruiting and training new staff will increase and with large numbers of new staff in critical roles, performance and outputs will undoubtedly be impacted.

Source: rogenSI "Don't Stop Believing: 2011 Global Mindset Index" (2011)

Aging and Demographics Identified as Part of Unrelated Trends Driving Talent Management

Research in thought leadership from Taleo Corporation finds that a number of otherwise unrleated changes around the world are likely to have a profound impact on the way companies of all sizes compete in an increasingly knowledge-based global economy. Specifically, "The Future of Talent Management: Underlying Drivers of Change" identifies integration of global economies, aging and demographics, a blurring of inside and outside talent, the Arab Spring uprisings, and the need to engage knowledge workers with mobile, social networks and other digital tools as key to defining how companies acquire and manage talent during the next five to 10 years.

With respect aging and demographics, the report states:

Baby Boomer retirement is top of mind in the United States, but the real demographic challenges are found in other developed countries, where population growth rates and aging populations are poised to stifle local economies. That means companies must move talent from areas of abundance to scarcity. And here, some new shifts are occurring. As once-new markets like China and India mature and labor there achieves parity with other developed economies, companies will look to other regions for cost-effective pools of talent, including Russia and Eastern Europe, Mexico, South America and "the rest of Asia."

Source: Taleo CorporationNews Release (November 8, 2011)

Australia: Clarius Group Reports Increase in Labor Participation by Older Workers

In its quarterly skills survey for the September 2011 quarter, the Clarius Group, while noting that the overall index fell in the quarter, also noted the aging demographic of the Australian workforce--the percentage of the labor force aged between 55-56 had increased to 13.8%, compared with 8.3% in 1998.

According to the report, "[b]alancing this exodus of older workers is the fact that an increasing number are staying because of higher life expectancy, improved health, and hopefully, because they enjoy working life." Furthermore, while many businesses are already targeting keeping the older workers, more initiatives are needed to sustain this development. The report also finds that "the older staff members want very much the same working structure as the youngest—-flexibility and challenges."

Clarius Group identifies three skills areas as being among the key skills the labor market will lose when this group of workers exit the labor force between 2017 and 2026: health, education, and engineering.

Source: Clarius Group Media Release (November 7, 2011)

Singapore: Age Friendly Workforce Asia Conference Opens with Study Showing Younger Workers Less Likely To Hire Older Workers

At the "Age Friendly Workforce Asia 2011" conference held in Singapore November 3 and 4, the Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices (TAFEP) announced the results of a study seeking to identify common factors that differentiate successful mature job-seekers from those who were unsuccessful. According to Ong Dai Lin, writing for TODAY, the study found that "[a] job-seeker above 40 stands a lower chance of snagging a job if he is interviewed by a panel of younger people. In contrast, his chances are substantially higher if the interviewers included people of similar age or those who are older."

Specifically, the likelihood of mature job-seekers getting and keeping the job jumped from 56.6% to 69.2% when they are faced with a mixed panel of young and old interviewers, instead of a panel comprising just younger people. In addition, the survey found that employability of mature workers increased when they are tech-savvy.

According to the conference sponsors, senior level decision makers came together to exchange ideas on business sustainability and lifelong employability: 400 CEOs and HR Directors "are revolutionising attitudes and harnessing new strategies towards an ageing workforce--the urgent reality of a greying phenomenon that is sweeping across Asia."

Also from TODAY:

Minister of State (Manpower) Tan Chuan-Jin felt that the study had "two key findings": One, diversifying the age composition of the recruitment selection panel increases a mature job seeker's chances. Two, the provision of flexible work arrangements helps widen the pool of mature job seekers.

Source: TODAY Online "Younger interviewers 'less likely to hire those above 40'" (November 4, 2011)

Australia: Minister Announces Removal of Age Limits on Superannuation

While announcing the introduction of superannuation guarantee rate legislation boosting the superannuation savings of Australians, the Assistant Treasurer and Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation, Bill Shorten, also announced the decision that there will be no age limit for superannuation guarantee contributions, effective July 1, 2013.

Scrapping the age limit had been a major goal of National Seniors.

Source: Minister for Financial Services and Superannuation Press Release (November 2, 2011)

Study: Employers with Older Employees, More Full-time Workers More Likely To Provide Pensions

A study issued by the Investment Company Institute reports that companies with an older, higher-earning workforce are more likely to offer retirement plans than those with younger, lower-income employees. According to "Who Gets Retirement Plans and Why, 2010," workers at small employers that sponsor retirement plans are as likely to participate as workers at large employers sponsoring retirement plans.

In addition, the study shows that 39% of workers aged 21 to 29 worked
for employers that sponsored retirement plans in 2010, compared to 57% of workers aged 55 to 64. Similarly, 23% of workers in the lowest quintile of annual earnings ($14,000 or less) worked for employers with retirement plans, compared with 74% of workers in the highest quintile ($60,000 or more. "Employees also were more likely to report that they worked for an employer that sponsored a plan if they were more fully engaged in the workforce."

Source: Investment Company Institute News Release (October 31, 2011)

United Kingdom: Survey Finds 6% of Workers Think They Can Never Afford To Retire

A survey conducted by Standard Life finds that over three quarters of a million 45-65 year olds in the United Kingdom say they don't think they will ever retire. While 6% of 45-65s who aren't retired don't think they will ever retire, 21% 1 of 45-65 year olds who have financial plans in place to provide for their long term future no longer feel their plans will support them due to the current economic climate.

On the other side of the equation, 16% of 45-65s who have financial plans in place to provide for their long term future feel confident, and a further 48% of 45-65s feel reasonably confident their financial plans will support their long-term future. Altogether, 72% of 45-65s who aren't retired plan to retire between the ages of 61 and 70 years old.

Source: Standard Life Press Release (October 28, 2011)

Canada: Study Finds that Delayed Retirement Has Become a Trend

A study by Statistics Canada finds that older workers have been increasingly delaying their retirement since the mid-1990s. This is consistent with the increase in the employment rate of older Canadians that began about the same time. Thus, a 50-year-old worker in 2008 could expect to stay in the labour force 3.5 years longer than in the mid-1990.

In an article--"Delayed retirement: A new trend?" by Yves Carrière and Diane Galarneau--published in Perspectives on Labour and Income (Vol. 23, no. 4), the authors conclude that:

Delayed retirement could alleviate some of the economic challenges of population aging. However, hours of work must be considered, since a drop in average weekly hours could partly offset the impact of an increased expected work life on annual hours and economic growth. In fact, the average work week for those 55 and over in 2010 was indeed 1 hour shorter than in 1997.

Source: Statistics Canada The Daily (October 26, 2011)

Netherlands: Government Introduces Bill To Facilitate Work after Age 65

The Dutch Social Affairs Minister, Henk Kamp, has introduced legislation designed to make it easier to work beyond the age of 65. Under the draft bill, employers will be allowed to extend temporary employment contracts for older workers beyond the current limit of two renewals.

Those over 65 will not be entitled to sick pay and employers will not have to take special steps to reintegrate them after sick leave. From 2013, employees will also be able to postpone their state pension for up to five years and receive a pension bonus of 6.5% for each year that they exceed the normal retirement age.

The bill is part of the agreements worked out by the Cabinet in June in the pension agreement made with employers and employees.

Source: Rijksoverheid (October 12, 2011)

Norway: Survey Finds Seniors Want To Keep Working, Employers Unprepared

Over half of respondents in the Norwegian Senior Policy Barometer would like to work after they have been entitled to a pension, but the majority of companies have no strategy for how to maintain and further develop the seniors. Specifically, the survey conducted for the Centre for Senior Policy reports that 66% of workers over 60 want to continue to work after reaching pension eligibility an increase from 54% in 2004.

According to Centre director Kari Østerud, a strategy to keep seniors in the workplace is not only about the senior's desire for more holidays and more flexible working hours. More importantly, it's about to be seen at work, having the opportunity to learn more, and the exciting challenges in the workplace.

The survey also found that the age before employees want to leave the workforce rose from 63.2 to 65 for 2011--the strongest increase in age ever measured. For those over 60, the age is even higher they want to come out of the workforce at 66.8, which is significantly higher than expected retirement age in Norway today.

Source: Centre for Senior Policy Press Release (October 19, 2011)

GAO Issues Repot of Recession on Employment Status of Older Americans

According to a report issued by the General Accountability Office (GAO) looking at unemployment and the recession, once older workers lose their jobs they are less likely to find other employment, household income has fallen 6% for adults aged 55 to 64, but increased by 5% for adults 65 and older, and older adults continued to spend more on medical care than those in younger age groups.

Specifically, in "Income Security: Older Adults and the 2007-2009 Recession," the GAO found that "the median duration of unemployment for older workers rose sharply from 2007 to 2010, more than tripling for workers 65 and older and increasing to 31 weeks from 11 weeks for workers aged 55 to 64. In addition, the proportion of older part-time workers who indicated they would prefer full-time work nearly doubled during this time."

It also found that median household net worth fell during the recession for older adults. Poverty rates increased for adults aged 55 to 64, but declined for those 65 and older, while low incomes were more prevalent in older age groups than in younger ones.

Source: General Accountability Office Report Abstract: GAO-12-76 (October 17, 2011)

Canada: Mining Industry Using Dual-Career Paths To Retain Knowledge Workers

According to a report issued by the Mining Industry Human Resources Council (MIHR), in partnership with the Canada Mining Innovation Council, Canadian mining companies are adopting dual-career development paths--that is, the creation of alternate advancement paths for technical and managerial employees--as a means to retain knowledge workers. In addition, "Making the Grade: Human Resources Challenges and Opportunities for Knowledge Workers in Canadian Mining" finds, among other things that a continued decline in fertility rates, coupled with an aging population, means that highly skilled immigrants will grow in importance to organizations looking to fill knowledge worker skills gaps.

Furthermore, the study finds that "employer outreach to younger audiences is seen as one key to future attraction of knowledge workers. The number of people connected through social media is increasing at an exponential rate, particularly among younger generations. Organizations are increasingly turning to social-media campaigns for recruitment, awareness and branding opportunities."

According to "Unearthing Possibilities: Human Resources Challenges and Opportunities in the Canadian Mineral Exploration Sector," a second report issued by the MIHR, the mining sector:

is not immune to the broad trend of an aging workforce—with 16 per cent of the workforce over age 55. Furthermore—and of particular importance—the sector has a shortage of workers in the middle parts of their career (aged 35 to 44), suggesting challenges with mid-career attrition.

Thus, among other things, it finds that programs and initiatives to engage and retain the aging workforce are also important for the future success of the exploration sector. .

Source: Mining Industry Human Resources Council News Release (October 14, 2011)

Case Study: Six Major US Employers and Age Diversity

The Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College has released a report examining the evolution of age diversity strategies within six major U.S. employers finding, among other things, that while U.S. employers tend to have formal diversity programs at their workplace, age diversity isn't always a clearly defined element, nor is it effectively communicated. In "Age: A 21st Century Diversity Imperative," the report looks at Cornell University, Dell, GlaxoSmithKline, Marriott, MITRE and Wells Fargo, each of which shared a promising practice along with its business case, implementation steps, metrics of success and future outlook.

The report also found that the approach to age diversity is evolving within organizations: from a compliance-only focus, to an older worker and then multigenerational approach, to an integrated age management strategy. Even in organizations that have implemented age-related initiatives focused on younger or older workers, the internal strategic focus is on the four generations in the workplace--veterans (born before 1946), boomers, Gen Y, and the up and coming Gen 2020 (born after 2000--and enhancing intergenerational relationships.

The practices examined included:

• a program for retirees enabling
  project work, consulting, volunteerism and website resources.
• a toolkit to better equip managers with the resources needed to successfully lead multigenerational teams.
• employee resource groups for boomers and young professionals

Source: Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College Publication Archive (September 2011)

Australia: Seniors Group Calls for Scrapping Age Limits on Employer Superannuation Contributions

At the Tax Forum in Canberra, National Seniors is calling on the government to scrap age limits on the superannuation guarantee at this week’s Tax Forum in Canberra. According to National Seniors chairman and economist Professor Judith Sloan, superannuation age limits are inconsistent with espoused labour market trends: "We’re getting mixed messages," she said. "On the issue of super guarantee age limits, it’s time for Government to put their money where their mouth is."

Their submission to the Tax Forum also calls for providing appropriate support for mature workers:

Creating a level playing field for mature age workers and indeed recognising the extensive skills and experience of many older Australians must remain an economic imperative. There are both economic and fiscal imperatives for improving the participation rate and employment of older people. Participation in the workforce is associated with positive life outcomes such as financial independence, a sense of identity and social opportunities, as well as contributing to healthy ageing.

The average duration of unemployment for a person aged 55 and over is much longer than that for younger people. As of July 2011, the average period of unemployment for those aged 55 and over was 63 weeks. This compares with only 33 weeks for those aged 15-54. That represents more than a year of lost productivity for the economy and a prolonged period of financial hardship for the individual, at a time of life when people are usually best placed to increase their retirement savings. This hardship is compounded by changes to indexation arrangements in recent years, which mean that a single person under 60 on Newstart Allowance receives only 65 per cent of the amount an age pensioner receives.

The Consultative Forum on Mature Age Participation is expected to put forward a range of proposals to redress barriers to employment in 2012. In the interim, National Seniors’ key priority is to increase the Newstart Allowance for the long-term unemployed to a level approaching the age pension.

Source: National Senioers Media Release (October 3, 2011)

Work-relevant Musculoskeletal Disorders among Older Workers

According to an article by Kathy Lewis, director of Working-Health Physiotherapy and Ergonomics, factors influencing work-relevant musculoskeletal disorders (WRMSDs) in the older workforce are numerous and complex, but an increasing understanding of this is emerging. After considering the positive and negative impacts of employing an older worker and highlighting how an organization can help support the aging population to help sustain a productive and healthy workforce with regards to neuromusculoskeletal health, she suggests a series of best practices for employers:

1. assess the determinants of work ability of the older worker;
2. target available resources to identified problem areas, aiming at an individual, group or organizational level and including such things as examination of job demands versus individual capabilities; examination of work-rest scheduling; shift-work guidance; examination of current reporting systems; and
3. consider policy implications with regards to the neuromusculoskeletal health of the older worker, such as age strategy; and
   the prevention of age discrimination in the workplace.

Source: Personnel Today"Work-relevant MSDs and the older workforce" (October 1, 2011)

New Hampshire: Report on Aging and Healthcare

A report issued by the New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies looks at how the state’s shift towards an increasingly older population from now until 2030 will influence critical policy debates, including health care. Among other things, according to "New Hampshire’s Silver Tsunami: Aging and the Health care system," the move towards an older population in New Hampshire will exacerbate existing problems in recruiting and retaining a health care workforce.

By 2030, nearly half a million residents will be over the age of 65, representing almost one-third of the population. While the report addresses a number of issues, it also confronts the aging workforce:

New Hampshire physicians are already significantly older than the nationwide physician population. And as the share of the population that is not working increases, it will raise concerns about who will take care of this aged population.

To this end, the report analyzes the dynamic of a shrinking labor pool following the retirement of the baby boomer generation, in particularly noting the growing discrepancy between the older population and the younger workers needed to care for it.

Source: New Hampshire Center for Public Policy Studies News Release (September 28, 2011)

Retirement and Health Survey Released

According to a survey on retirement and health, 54% of preretirees who are now planning to retire later than they were when they were in their 40s say the primary reason for the delay is that they do not feel they can afford it financially. The Retirement and Health Poll conducted by NPR, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health also finds that 51% percent of people who say that they will never fully retire say they do not feel they can afford to retire financially.

Generally, the survey finds that one in four retirees think life in retirement is worse than it was before they retired, with the results showing stark differences between what pre-retirees think retirement will be like, and what retirees say is actually the case.

"Those of us over 50 and working are optimistic about our future health and health care, but that optimism is not necessarily shared by those who have already retired," said Risa Lavizzo-Mourey, MD, MBA, president and CEO of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. "Many people who have already retired say their health is worse, and they worry about costs of medical treatment and long-term care. Insights from the poll can help policy makers and others think about how to meet the needs of aging Americans. There are changes we can make to our health care system, finances and communities that might help ensure that our retirement years will be as fulfilling as we hope."

Source: News Release (September 27, 2011); NPR.org "Retirement: Reality Not As Rosy As Expectations" (September 27, 2011) and related stories

Australia: Survey Finds More Discontent Among Older Workers and Gen Y

A survey of 1,000 Australian workers conducted by Mercer finds that Australians have a higher regard for their employer and their manager and they are satisfied with the type of work they do, but that older workers and Generation Y are not entirely happy, and are more likely to leave. Specifically with regard to older workers:

[O]lder workers aged 55-64 are more satisfied with the type of work they do and are less likely to leave but feel they are being overlooked for career development opportunities. Just 40% believe they have sufficient opportunity for growth and development, compared to 64% of those aged 25-34. Older workers are also least likely to be satisfied with their pay, with 49% saying they are paid fairly, compared to 66% of 25-24 year olds and 51% overall.

Source: Mercer Press Release (September 13, 2011)

AARP Announces 15 Best International Employers of Workers Over 50

AARP has released its 2011 list of the 15 companies and organizations globally that have the most positive workplace policies for their older workers. The list includes winners from Australia, Austria, Germany, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Singapore and the United Kingdom and includes four employers that have won before.

Among the practices cited by AARP as worthy of recognition were:

• promoting older workers through a training camp designed to help older job applicants and the long-term unemployed re-enter the workforce (DB Services; Germany)
• designating older workers in each function as subject matter experts; their role as facilitators and trainers has helped raise the profile of older workers and contributed to a culture shift in the organization (Lam Soon Edible Oils Sdn Bhd; Malaysia)
• offering a partial retirement scheme that allows older workers to draw company pension benefits while continuing to work part-time (Marks and Spencer plc; United K
  

Source: AARP News Release (September 7, 2011)

Canada: Survey Finds Canadians Needing To Delay Retirement Because of Lack of Savings

According to a survey conducted by the Canadian Payroll Association, 40% of Canadians said they now expect to retire later than they previously planned, and the primary reason (cited by 40%) was "I'm not saving enough money for retirement." Furthermore, the CPA survey found 57% of those surveyed said that they would be in financial difficulty if their pay was delayed by even a week.

Almost three-quarters of employees (74%) said they have saved less than a quarter of their retirement savings goal. “This is particularly troubling when you realize that 71% of the respondents are over the age of 35, with the bulk in their main saving years between 35 and 54,” states Dianne Winsor, CPM, Chairman of the CPA.

Another significant finding – half (50%) of employees across the country reported that they are saving 5% or less of their net pay. This is well below the 10% of net pay that financial planning experts generally recommend as a retirement savings rate.

Source: Canadian Payroll Association News Release (September 8, 2011)