Introduction
The world seems to be hotting up as far as older workers are concerned with an increasing number of surveys and statistics now being published and commented upon in the public arena. The only problem is that we are receiving mixed messages from all this information, in part due to the way it is being collected and interpreted.
This may be because we now really are reaching the “tipping point” whereby those issues which have been “just around the corner” for some time have finally reached us and the tension is beginning to show. However, the cultural and attitudinal changes required in the workplace are not yet generally accepted as inevitable and so a vigorous rearguard action is being fought.
Furthermore, with an ageing population, there are also any number of societal ills to be confronted and political points to be made and so there is endless scope for using the information for whatever end seems appropriate. That is not to say that there aren’t some very urgent issues which need to be addressed and which will affect everyone. Below we provide a few illustrations of the information which has recently become available.
Latest employment statistics
The latest employment figures published by the Office of National Statistics show a generally buoyant picture for the year just gone although this may be the calm before the storm, if the economy takes a significant downturn this year.
What is of particular interest to us is what has been happening to the over 50s employment position. The hard facts are that the UK finished 2007 with 29.4 million in employment, an increase of 296000 over the previous year. Of this increase 172000, or nearly 60%, is accounted for by the over 50 population. The total of over 50s in work was some 7.8 million, the highest total since records began. There genuinely does seem to be a trend for people to be working till later in life.
These then are the bare facts and they have been the subject of varying interpretations in the press. The Daily Mail has suggested that the “Over 50s are being forced back to work to meet rising bills”. They go on to say that “Poor pensions, sick partners, elderly parents and grown up children who need financial support are common causes for working, rather than retiring.”
While we would agree with the various reasons for continued working, their first assertion sits uneasily with the perceived difficulty for over 50s to find employment and the received wisdom “that most new jobs are being taken by migrant workers – a group overwhelmingly aged under 40” (CIPD). The Chartered Institute of Personnel Development go on to suggest that the explanation is that migrant workers are taking most of the new job vacancies but that older workers, in place, are staying in their jobs and delaying retirement.
Whether this latter phenomenon is due to financial pressures forcing older workers to cling on to their jobs, or a perception by employers that there really is a growing skills shortage, or the realisation that lifespan is increasing rapidly and will need to satisfactorily filled, much remains still to be understood.
However, for the foreseeable future it will remain much easier for older workers to remain in place than to find new employment. Hence, anyone contemplating retirement whether to enjoy those “golden years” or because they are sick of working, should make sure that they have thought it all through fully and carefully.
One in five still pressured to retire by their employers
Portraying a different perspective on the UK employment scene, research by leading insurer AXA has revealed that, despite the introduction of age discrimination legislation in 2006, ageism is still rife in today’s workplace with many retirees experiencing pressure to quit their job by their employers.
Of those retiring early, whilst 80% did so through choice, one in five (20%) experienced pressure from their employer. This, at least, is down on the previous year’s figure of 28%. For the full AXA press release click here.
And More….
And so the plot thickens.
More work by the CIPD suggests that the demand for working beyond 65 looks set to increase markedly in the next 15 years. Based on a survey of 1000 workers aged between 50 and 64 years, it finds that just under two-fifths (38%) of individuals plan to carrying on working beyond 65. Currently only 11% of the workforce work beyond State Pension Age.Interestingly, among those who said that they did not plan to work past 65, 31% would change their mind if their employer allowed them to work flexibly.
For the full CIPD press release click here.
And in another study, Stepstone, an online recruitment firm, suggest that in Europe, America and Asia companies have admitted for the first time that older workers are the key to filling the skills gap, although they have done little about it to date.
And all of this is taking place in a climate of increased and increasing life expectancy and pressure on pensions. The UK Pensions Regulator is now going to require that company pension schemes assume that for men retiring today at 65 they will live to at least 89. This will put even more pressure on the continued existence of defined benefit pension schemes.
