Workplace barriers and enablers of longer working lives

Transcription

1 Workplace barriers and enablers of longer working lives Robert Anderson EUROFOUND EC/OECD Workshop on delivering longer working lives and higher retirement ages Brussels, November /11/2014 1

2 Eurofound research on age management in companies : Age barriers in employment : Employment initiatives for an ageing workforce 2006: Database of good practice 200 company case studies Guide to good practice in age management 2011: Income from work after retirement 2012: Policies for older workers in the recession 2013: Role of Social Partners in Age Management 19/11/2014 2

3 Changes in employment rates between 2007 and 2012, by age group, EU28 (% points) Eurofound (2014) Work preferences after 50 3 rd EQLS policy brief 19/11/2014 3

4 European Working Conditions Survey: Do you think you will be able to do your current job when you are 60 years old? 19/11/2014 4

5 Source: Eurofound, 5 th European Working Conditions Survey 2010 Doing your current job at age 60 EU average: 58.7 % Netherlands: 75.4 % Slovenia: 25.6 % Portugal: 40.2 % 5

6 Source: Eurofound, 5 th European Working Conditions Survey 2010 Key factors related to perceived work sustainability Largest effect: Exposure to ergonomic risks: posture and movement related risks (standing, carrying heavy loads, repetitive arm movements etc.) Experience of discrimination, violence, abuse, bullying or harassment both associated with lower levels of perceived job sustainability Relatively large effect: Work life balance is positively associated with sustainability of work Career prospects are positively associated Also important: not having monotonous tasks; cognitive dimensions of work; autonomy (protective role); work intensity (deterrent role) 6

7 How companies can respond: Measures to create an age-friendly workplace Health promotion Work design and organisation Work ability Training and skills developments HR management and corporate culture Ilmarinen and Tempel (2002) 19/11/2014 7

8 Good practice in age management Job recruitment avoiding age discrimination Training, development and lifelong learning Career development Flexible working practice; reconciliation issues; work organisation; working time arrangements Health protection and promotion; workplace design Redeployment internal mobility Employment exit and transition to retirement Towards more comprehensive measures But: Contradictions, Ambivalences, Ambiguities Eurofound (2006) Good practice in age management 19/11/2014 8

9 Age Management Developments in measures mid-90s to mid-00s Most common measures are in training and development followed by flexible working Increase over time in the diversity and complexity of approaches to age management Tendency for measures to promote health and well-being to be reported more, and specific measures for recruitment less Targeting to skilled manual workers still prominent but more attention to professional and managerial staff and more attention to all age groups Little specific attention to low-skilled, or to gender issues 19/11/2014 9

10 Company age management in 2011 pays increasing attention to: Promoting 'employability' (skills), including specifically for older workers Intergenerational knowledge transfer, involvement in training younger workers Flexible working arrangements, with more partial retirement schemes Eurofound (2012) Employment trends and policies for older workers in the recession 19/11/

11 Work-life balance: Reconciliation of caring and working in an ageing workforce In nearly all countries more than half of carers under 65 combine care with employment 9%-16% of employees are providing regular care, especially older (female) workers Generally lack of action in the workplace to support working carers benefits, information, services, flexible working times, work organisation and leave entitlements Enabling access to employment of excluded carers 19/11/

12 What some companies do Practical measures Flexibility in working hours; part-time work, longer care leave Minimising financial disadvantages Payment during emergency leave; minimising income loss associated with working time reduction; paid leave or topping up of social benefit payments Care related support Information; counselling; care brokerage; practical daily life support Other measures Awareness raising; promotion of positive attitudes; addressing carers health and wellbeing Eurofound (2011) Company initiatives for workers with care responsibilities 19/11/

13 What some trade unions do Raise awareness and promote good practice (Austria, Germany, Netherlands) Promote research on working carers (Netherlands, ETUC) Develop collective agreements that include reference to work and care (Austria, Germany, Netherlands, Slovenia) Support legislation e.g. Family Care Leave for carers (Denmark, Germany, Finland, Belgium, Sweden, France) Eurofound (forthcoming) Demographic change and policies for the reconciliation of work and family life 19/11/

14 Policy frameworks for arduous work Arduous work is sometimes defined in the national labour legislation but not in all countries: Types of work (shift work) and working conditions (physically difficult positions) or energy consumption (in Kj), environment of work (cold, heat, pressure), danger for other people (pilots, drivers); Under the condition of duration and late career; In a few countries specific occupational groups are included in a special regime with exceptions for pensionable age; Usually: police, army, miners, mariners, nurses.

15 Rethinking arduous work: Retraining AT, Fackkräftestipendium (qualified workers grant): Workers in arduous jobs can get formal education in order to switch to an occupation which is under-serviced. DE, WeGebAU programme, authorities give priority to training initiatives to allow workers change occupations. This initiative is however not limited or focussed on arduous workers but all marginalized groups. UK, Sector Skills Councils (SSCs), helps accreditation of prior learning; takes into account both organised prior-learning and learning gained through unstructured experiences.

16 Mentoring programs ES, contrato de relevo : A partial retirement scheme is linked to the hiring of a new employee, to support intergenerational knowledge transfer; FR, The contrat de generation (le generations contract, since March 2013) aims to combine job-creation for young people (16-25) while keeping older workers 57+ in employment with the main goal of skill and knowledge transfer. Eurofound (forthcoming) Mid-career review and internal mobility

17 In conclusion There is momentum for age management in some countries and organisations but commitment is not adequate to the scale of demographic change. Not enough to reform retirement and pension policies need investment in workability and employability of an ageing workforce. Potential of collective bargaining and social dialogue still to be realised. Age management demands new models of working, learning and caring over the life course with specific attention to gender. 19/11/

18 Thank you 19/11/