18 November 2019

Utilise the talents of your more experienced members of staff

We have to accept the ‘young and talented recruit cavalry' is not coming to the rescue, so we need to look at engaging the energies and talents of the older workforce as a joint and meaningful strategy to the ongoing challenge of gaining new talent.

With UK residents living longer and having fewer children, we are evidencing an ageing population, which is set only to increase. As a result, across the country our members are experiencing the same workforce planning challenges, namely ageing workforces and a very small pool of ‘young' candidates to recruit from.

Of course, you need ‘fresh talent and energy' to carry on the business and form a succession plan in time, but why is an ageing workforce seen as a negative? Why can't we harness their skills and abilities more and develop greater engagement and purpose from them. We have to accept that a flood of talent and new recruits is not going to happen and so a strategy to engage, develop and value an older workforce is a way forward also.

Common Misconceptions
There are multiple sayings and idioms that we are all guilty of using, to the detriment of older members of society.

"You can't teach an old dog new tricks"... Of course you can. Most older people are interested in learning and take on new hobbies during retirement, when they have more time to pursue their interests, so why not utilise that aptitude for learning in the workplace

"Over the hill"... The idea that once you reach mid-life everything goes downhill, whereas for many people at this stage of life they have more money, fewer dependants and life is on the up

"Having a senior moment"... Forgetting someone's name, losing your keys, it happens to everyone regardless of age. Ageist stigma often only associates this with the older but it's a fallacy

"Past their prime"... Assuming older colleagues are no longer active or as good at something as they once were. Physical abilities may change with age, but so does wisdom, experience and knowledge.

Instead, let's respect our elders and use more of the positive language and idioms associated with those colleagues reaching that "ripe old age" who are most likely still "young at heart".

Maximise Their Potential
If you have an ageing workforce, utilise it! Support your older employees to maximise their full potential and you'll reap the benefits in terms of productivity and employee engagement.

1. Consider Appreciative Inquiry. Instead of looking at the problems and challenges that the workforce has, appreciate inquiry is a managerial method and concept that refocuses attention on what works well, the positive core of your workforce, and what your employees really care about. This principle advises that productivity and sustainable change requires social bonding. With employee engagement and workplace unity (promoted through strong relationships between colleagues), you will see an increase in employee creativity, openness to change and flexibility.

So, what does appreciative inquiry have to do with your ageing workforce? Well, instead of predicting the negatives: sick leave, health and safety risks, slowdown in productivity etc., look at the positives: invaluable experience, industry knowledge, loyalty to your company, unwavering work ethic, reliable and dedicated employee etc., and maximise these!

2. Develop a broader culture of learning and development. Ensure ageing workers are given equal access to training and educational opportunities, as studies suggest that the training needs of older workers are largely ignored (Patrickson & Hartmann 1995). This is short-sighted of employers, as studies suggest ageing workers are more likely to stay with their employer than younger workers and therefore investment in training older colleagues is worthwhile.

3. Make the job fit the employee, not the other way round (if possible). Job Crafting - This can include reviewing and amending the requirements of the job in order to meet the competencies of the ageing worker (Elliott 1995). You can also make your workforce culture more ‘collaborative', to encourage knowledge and skills sharing and teamwork, which further builds on employee engagement, learning and having a sense of purpose. Likewise, your HR functions such as recruitment, selection, training and performance management will need to be adapted to embrace older workers

4. Encourage mentoring. Have your ageing workers mentor their younger and/or less experienced colleagues. This will obviously improve organisational knowledge and skill, as well as provide that vital recognition and respect to your ageing employee (Jorgensen 2005).

Support your ageing employees
Facilitate flexible working arrangements, as encouraging employees to work more flexibly can help to ease them towards retirement, rather than going cold-turkey. We're all familiar with the saying ‘use it or lose it'. For some older colleagues, losing their job means losing their routine, social interaction and skills, which numerous studies have shown can lead to a decline in confidence as well as their overall health and wellbeing.

When your ageing employees do retire, consider re-engaging them on short, fixed-term contracts during periods of known peaks in demand. This benefits the individual through flexible purpose and income, whilst helping you to achieve your business production objectives.

Be mindful that although ageing employees' children may now be adults and no longer dependant on them, your ageing employees' parents may have become dependants. You should be sympathetic to this and remember that all employees have a statutory right to time off for dependants. A dependant could be a spouse, partner, child, grandchild, parent, or someone who depends on that employee for care. There is no limit to the amount of time off or the number of occasions of dependant's leave that an employee can take, so long as it is ‘reasonable'. The reasonableness will be assessed on a case by case basis.

What if an older colleague is genuinely unable to fulfil their job role due to ill-health?
Please speak to your regional HR advisor before taking any action. However, you must support the individual and may need to seek an independent medical report from their GP and/or an Occupational Health referral. The purpose of which will be to obtain information about any medical conditions, whether they are likely to be deemed as disabled under the Equality Act 2010, any reasonable adjustments that can be made to their role, suitable alternative/amended duties, if they are off sick then prognosis and the likelihood of return etc. It is important to speak to your HR advisor prior to making any decisions or taking any action.

If you have an ageing workforce, it would be worthwhile taking a proactive approach and reviewing your Ill-Health Capability Policy now. If you don't have a policy, then look at implementing one. This will ensure that you are fully prepared, the process is structured and the supportive stance of the company is clearly defined.

Remember, "Inside every older person is a younger person wondering what happened" (Jennifer Yane) and more importantly, you will be old one day too!"

Information & Support
For further guidance, or to discuss a specific case, please contact your regional HR Adviser: https://bit.ly/32T6o1A.

For a BPIF Occupational Health referral, please contact: [email protected]

For further research information, please revert to the articles referenced below.

References
Elliott, Robert. (1995) Human resource management's role in the future aging of the workforce, Review of Public Personnel Administration 15 (2): 5-17.

Jorgensen, Bradley. (2005) The ageing population and knowledge work: a context for action, Foresight. 7(1): 61-76

Price, Robin A. and Colley, Linda (2007) Assessing HR Strategies for Retaining an Ageing Workforce. In Proceedings 15th International Employment Relations Association Conference: Working Lives, Working Choices. Pp. 1-18, Canterbury, England.

Shacklock, K. The Ageing Workforce: Ethical Implications For HRM Practitioners.

Stephen Billett, Darryl Dymock, Greer Johnson & Greg Martin (2011) Overcoming the paradox of employers' views about older workers, The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 22:06, 1248-1261