Partner Article

Working Longer ? Challenge or Opportunity

We are living longer and healthier and our working environment is increasingly benign. Physically
we can work for longer but few employers have wanted to retain workers beyond the default
retirement age, concerned about the difficulty of subsequently managing them out of the workforce.
Loss of that default means that those who wish can remain longer in work. Nevertheless, employers
and employees alike have been concerned by the change. Some employees fear being forced
by diminished pensions and changing expectations to work longer. Employers worry about the
ability of older employees and mourn the loss of an opportunity to easily avoid issues of health and
effectiveness. We clearly need to think differently about work and retirement.

Many of us want to continue to work while we can, to maintain networks, interests or purpose, or
through financial need. Good work is demonstrably good for health and wellbeing. In our later
lives though, and with final salary less important to the size of our pensions, it seems unlikely that
we will continue to want to compete for further promotion. Instead we may look for flexibility,
job satisfaction and even social benefit in our work. New models of flexible working seem likely to
provide a win-win for employers and employees alike.

The pool of working age adults is shrinking. In recession, the urgency of this issue has diminished
but in times of growth we will need older workers to remain in the workforce. Those employers who
best understand how to use the experience of life and work that these people have to offer, and
the roles they are best placed to fill, will gain a competitive advantage. Many have suggested the
advantage of using experienced older employees as mentors, trainers and exemplars for the younger
and less experienced. There is also evidence that older people provide a steadying influence and
softer skills in a team of younger people, which may result in improved service delivery. In a time
when the average consumer too is becoming older and more discerning, this might be just the
advantage a business needs.

Living longer implies a greater need to look after ourselves. Most of us have good intentions but
in our busy lives access to healthcare, and especially to preventive healthcare mechanisms, can
take a low priority. We spend a great deal of our lives at work and many of our strongest peer
support networks are in the workplace. Work based health interventions make a great deal of
sense and have demonstrated huge benefits to health and the early detection of disease. It is in
the interests of employers to keep employees in good shape. Why not consider innovative ways in
which you might facilitate access to healthcare initiatives in the workplace, at a minimal impact to
the business?

There are roles, thankfully fewer than in the past, which leave us damaged through the physical
demands of work much earlier than traditional, let alone extended, retirement. Sadly, these will
often carry the double disadvantage of low pay (and hence low pension contribution) and a shorter

working life. The mark of a good employer will be how people are supported to transition into less
damaging roles at a suitable career transition point.

So to retirement. Until now, whether welcome or not, this was marked by congratulations,
psychological permission to withdraw from the rat race and a warm feeling about past
achievements. In future, lacking the permission of default retirement age and concerned that we
have accumulated insufficient resource to support a prolonged retirement, many of us will feel the
need to work for as long as possible. To do so indefinitely though must end badly in being removed
due to capability issues, a sad end to a long and productive working life. To avoid this, employers
will need to be more proactive, to manage training, performance and expectations of retirement.

The issues surrounding the loss of the default retirement age are not really about age but culture.
We gain knowledge and experience differently and we all age differently; our number of birthdays
is a poor indicator of capability. Successful employers will remain those who understand their
employees as individuals, actively manage their needs and expectations and support them to remain
effective contributors through to a mutually satisfactory separation.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Graham Armitage .