Debra Thurley: Employers embrace the aged worker!

Contributed by Debra Thurley (State Candidate for Franklin – Palmer United Party)

If human resource management is embracing diversity in the workplace and the role and retention of the aged worker is becoming critical in ensuring an adequate tax base into the future why are employers disinclined to employ the mature worker. In essence why wouldn’t employers use them?

Over the past decade, successive governments by changing retirement and superannuation conditions have been attempting by policy development to lift labour participation among older workers – encouraging mature workers to stay in the workforce longer or re-enter the workforce.

If the Government of the day wants the mature worker to continue to bolster their retirement savings and not rely fully or in part on Government Age Pensions then increased recognition of the value of the older worker by employers must be encouraged and every effort made to reduce the barriers that discourage mature worker participation in the labour force.

The explosion of new technologies and social media into the workplace are generally considered areas favouring the younger worker. What mightn’t be apparent, however, is that the age group of people over 50 that uses social media and the internet is growing fast.

To successfully and resourcefully manage a diverse workforce, management need to reflect more on the issues of different generations in the workplace and refocus training and development to successfully meet the needs of all ages including the mature worker.

Population aging is predicted to have massive implications for the Australian workforce until at least around 2040. The impact of “Baby Boomers”retiring en masse would reduce significantly the tax base needed to adequately support social security and health care at its current levels.

In coming years the proportion of mature workerswill increase significantly where Australia will experience an era where their workforce is the oldest in their history. In the future there will be more people aged 65+ than there will be of what we now call working age (15-65) and that this same working age population by 2050 will be half of what it is today.

Dispelling the myths of the mature aged worker and building the capacity to encourage employees to lifelong learning, to value skills gained and developed over time but importantly to facilitate the passing of those acquired skills of the mature worker between the generations is such an important shift for the future.

Debra Thurley will complete a Masters of Employment Relations 2014
Debra Thurley State Candidate for Franklin Palmer United Party www.debrathurley.com.au