GOING BACK TO WORK: Senior employment a benefit for both the worker and the employer

Though most American workers envision a productive career with a comfortable retirement some time in their mid-60s, the economic and social reality often paints a different picture. Increasingly, workers are delaying retirement or returning to the workforce out of necessity or desire, presenting a unique and positive opportunity for businesses and employers.

Though most American workers envision a productive career with a comfortable retirement some time in their mid-60s, the economic and social reality often paints a different picture. Increasingly, workers are delaying retirement or returning to the workforce out of necessity or desire, presenting a unique and positive opportunity for businesses and employers.

“The private business community is really a critical partner in increasing the viability of the aging experience,” said Robert Ence, executive director for the Commission on Aging housed at the University of Utah. “We should be able to cultivate something from that experience and not waste the gray matter.”

The benefits of recruiting and accommodating older workers are myriad and well-proven.

“One of the things that is really great about older workers is the work ethic they’ve developed over the years,” said Alan Ormsby, state director of AARP.

Older workers are better at being on time, being prepared and being where they need to be when they need to be there.

“Those things have been drilled into older workers for their entire work career,” Ormsby said.

Older workers are often more willing and able to work flexible, part-time or otherwise non-traditional schedules or shifts, Ence said, providing an employer with flexibility and adaptability.

Older workers can also act as mentors to younger workers. According to the Job Accommodation Network (JAN), they bring a diversity of thought and approach to group projects, take work more seriously and have established networks of contacts and clients, all of which can provide learning opportunities for younger workers.

The benefits to senior citizens who continue in or return to the workforce are also well-known. According to Ence, of everyone who retires in the state of Utah, half will return to the workforce and, of that number, half will go back to work out of economic necessity. The business community, Ence said, is a critical to helping individuals meet their needs and take care of themselves as they age. And giving seniors the chance to return to work and cultivate continuing economic independence also helps alleviate the burden on government and other organizations that would otherwise be spending resources to support those individuals.

“We could be pretty creative and figure out how we can share that responsibility,” Ence said.

However, many older workers return to work because they want to, not because they have to.

“They want to find meaningful work where they can benefit themselves and benefit others,” Ormsby said.

Most people spend their careers in jobs they didn’t love so they could pay the bills.

“Once they’re at the point where they’ve paid the bills and they don’t have to have a job, that meaning is what they’re after,” Ormsby said.

The opportunity to return to work also helps older workers retain mental acuity, gives them a social network and prevents them from becoming isolated and emotionally despondent, and allows older individuals to continue using their skills and developing their passions.

“We see that people who go to work, they tend to be healthier, they tend to be happier,” Ormsby said. “Work has some really good benefits for older adults.”

Yet despite all the proven benefits to workers and employers, the business community in Utah has largely been absent from efforts to support the state’s aging population. Why?

Some employers may have misconceptions that are preventing them from tapping into the vast resource of older workers. A 2009 report from the Sloan Center on Aging & Work found that hiring managers believed a variety of stereotypes that prevented them from considering older job seekers. For example, they believed older applicants were more likely to be burned out and absent due to illness.

“It is absolutely the opposite. Older workers tend to be more consistently at work than younger workers,” Ormsby said. “They’re usually more on time and at work than anyone else.”

The study also indicated employers also worried that older workers are bad at working with younger supervisors and reluctant to travel. According to AARP, other similar studies have shown that employers assume older workers are less productive, mentally slower and more expensive to employ than younger individuals.

In fact, intellectual capacity and the ability to perform routine or repetitive tasks are not automatically diminished by age. Rather, research shows that older workers who perform the same type of tasks for a number of years bring accumulated work experience and abilities that translate into higher productivity. In addition, the cognitive skills that allow for multi-tasking can be enhanced with exercise and training, meaning an active 75-year-old can easily outperform a 40-year-old couch potato.

Older workers also represent potential cost savings, not increased costs, for organizations that employ them. Their existing skills and experience often translate to lower turnover and less need for expensive training and lengthy employee orientation periods.

As for the idea that older workers are not interested in or receptive to new training or technologies, or that they are unable to successfully transition to new systems and processes, Ence said that while some older workers might need help to “re-career,” it is something they are eager and able to do.

“I think it comes as a surprise to people, their ability to adapt to technology,” Ormsby said.

It is true that companies may need to make some accommodations for older workers, but they are often low-cost or cost-free and are outweighed by the benefit an older worker brings to the organization.

According to JAN, potential necessary accommodations might include a workstation closer to the bathroom; longer breaks or more frequent, shorter breaks; reducing physical exertion; accessible parking and work sites; technological solutions to assist with hearing or sight impairments; and flexible schedules and work-from-home options.

Older workers and job seekers can also help themselves by keeping their skills current and making sure their assets are obvious to potential employers. AARP recommends that older workers and job seekers put time and effort into their social media footprint, invest time and effort in face-to-face networking, use professional email addresses and keep resumes simple.

And, just as employers shouldn’t underestimate older workers, older job seekers shouldn’t underestimate themselves. Take it from career coach Beverly Jones of Clearways Consulting in Washington, D.C., as quoted in an AARP article about common mistakes made by older job hunters: “I encourage my clients to play long shots. You have to chase off-the-wall prospects, jobs you’ve never done but have the skills and ability to perform. Be fearless.”