As someone who’s not far from 50, studies about “older” workers catch my eye.
They provide a hint of things to come – good or bad.
A recently released report by WarrenShepell Research Group, described as a “wake-up call” for employers, is such a document. It offers reason for both concern and optimism.
The dominant conclusion of the report is that older workers (age 50 and up) now report more personal and workplace stress – and more conflict on the job – than their younger colleagues.
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| Older staff becoming more important to companies, says Rod Phillips. |
The report speculates that one probable cause of this stress is that older workers are reacting to increased ageism in the workplace.
Stereotypes associated with older workers persist: That they have diminished learning capacity, skills obsolescence, are resistant to change, are slower decision makers and suffer from lower productivity.
If the speculation is true – the report notes that between 2001 and 2002, the number of age discrimination complaints increased by 71 per cent – it isn’t a comforting picture.
“The image of the gently aging colleague at work doesn’t necessarily hold water any more,” says Rod Phillips, president and CEO of WarrenShepell.
“There are different dynamics in play, or dynamics that older workers aren’t protected from.”
Those dynamics include:
* Reduced stability for tenured employees in many organizations.
* Rapidly changing technology that speeds up work life, while research shows that as workers age their work pace (not necessarily the quality) drops.
* Pressure from younger workers who may feel that older employees are keeping them from moving up the corporate ladder.
* Changing social patterns, including the fact that some people have married later, and may share the same stresses of younger people such as raising children.
The stress levels that older workers are reporting are only slightly higher than their younger colleagues, but they are rising at a faster rate. It’s a trend employers should be wary of, Phillips says.
Demographically, older workers are plainly becoming an increasingly significant component of the workforce.
Statistics Canada estimates that in 2002 nearly 36 per cent of the workforce was made up of people between 45 and 64. The figure is expected to be nearly 39 per cent in 2006, a figure that could rise if mandatory retirement is abolished across the country.
But there may be a bigger reason to be concerned.
Stressed older employees are less likely to provide two “value-adds” that they’ve traditionally been recognized for in the workplace.
The first benefit, says Phillips, is wisdom – the corporate memory, skills, expertise, problem solving skills and leadership potential – informal and formal – that experienced workers provide.
Second, older employees have traditionally brought a higher sense of well-being to the workplace. It’s a calming trait that has a positive effect on the organization overall, particularly in companies that are going through turmoil.
The WarrenShepell report was released in late October and examined employee assistance provider (EAPs) access patterns among younger and older workers to identify outstanding differences between them. (WarrenShepell is a provider of EAPs and related organizational health and wellness services.)
The data, from 2001-03, represented more than 125,000 employees in more than 2,500 companies across Canada. The age groups were divided into those 49 years and under, and 50 years and over.
Phillips acknowledges that the report is just one study, but notes the sample size was large and the findings resonate from a common-sense point of view.
The bottom line is that employers must promote healthy and engaging cultures, or lose a valuable asset either to an early retirement package or a competitor, he says.
To do so, companies must understand and meet challenges facing older workers.
Those challenges?
Research shows that as we age, our motor skills and cognitive skills slow down. Older workers don’t perform as well on tasks that involve speed or reaction time.
However, when older workers are familiar with their tasks and are trained for longer periods of time, they can compete on a level playing field with younger staff.
“We know that older workers tend to take a little longer for training,” Phillips says. “That’s fine because if you accommodate that, they will actually retain more.”
As part of creating a healthy and engaging culture, the report calls for flexible work schedules and flexible forms of retirement. Training opportunities should be available just as they are for younger employees. And employers should adopt practices (i.e. softer lighting, memory training, ergonomics, etc.) that help accommodate an older worker.
The report notes that in one study, older workers cited “amount and haste of work” as the single most important factor leading to their unnecessary early retirement.
It notes that younger and older workers want many of the same things. They require autonomy, clear feedback, decision input, challenging but realistic demands and growth opportunities.
Younger workers, however, are motivated more by compensation, while senior staff want to teach, mentor and generally “give back” to society.
“We think that employers need to look at the demographics of their workforce and understand these issues,” Phillips says. “That’s a first good step.”
The significance of the report, he believes, is that it will spur employers to begin thinking more seriously about the issue of older workers.
Clearly there are physical limitations in some jobs, but overall people are healthier and stronger than ever before.
And contrary to the notion that as workers age they become “warm and incompetent,” Phillips says WarrenShepell sees the opposite in today’s workplace.
“We are seeing organizations that we work with planning for their employees to work into their 70s,” he says.
“These are companies that are competitive. They don’t just keep people around. They see that tax lawyer who has 40 years of experience and realize what he’s worth at 75.”
For the 50-and-over crowd – and those of us who are approaching that magic moment – it’s a comforting thought.
Web watch:
www.warrenshepell.com
(Mike Dempster can be reached at miked@businessedge.ca)
