The book, written by  Kate Hamblin a Research Fellow at the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, explores the labour market policies (including unemployment benefits, active labour market policies and partial pension receipt) and pension policies (pension principles, early retirement and incentives for deferral) adopted by these nations from the mid-1990s onwards.

Unfortunately the price, £55, puts it out of reach of most readers.

Further details at  http://www.palgrave.com/products/title.aspx?pid=534123

Like other commentators we wish it every good fortune but we have reservations. Some of those reservations have been adequately expressed elsewhere and we link you below to Dick Stroud’s excellent blog 50-Plus Marketing on the subject.

http://20plus30.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/ready-for-ageing-alliance-will-it-make.html

We have long been asking for some statesmanlike approach to the subject of growing older but have seen very little so far. Indeed only this week we have seen major press coverage devoted to the exceedingly trivial issue of who should or should not receive free bus passes and TV licences. This does no credit to the media nor to the politicians involved but does highlight the very poor level of debate currently taking place.

Although the participating bodies in this new alliance are all much esteemed they do, in my opinion, have a fatal weakness – they are mainly concerned with today’s existing old, not tomorrow’s. As such they do not feature all that highly in most people’s consciousness.

The real way to get people involved in ageing issues is to make today’s young realise that this is coming for them, like it or not, and any change now will be for their benefit. And if they want improvement they must take personal and collective responsibility for their futures. Therefore, I would argue for a somewhat different mix of pressure groups to extend the sphere of influence.

Fortunately I didn’t have to wait long. Charlie Mullins, founder and CEO of Pimlico Plumbers writing in Real Business magazine, outlines the case for taking age out of the employment arena and concentrating on an individual’s skills and ability – whatever their years. He states:

“The simple fact is that in the 21st century, just like a thousand years ago, we need to use all the resources available to us. If we are serious about returning to economic growth, to do anything else would be stupid.” 

Quite.

The article is well-worth a read.  Click here

The survey revealed that a third of employers felt the abolition of the DRA has had a negative or very negative impact on their organisation: two-thirds cited difficulties in succession planning whilst just under half reported that opportunities were being blocked for younger workers.

Other implications included increased costs of redundancies and/or providing benefits (37%), more management time having to be spent on performance management (29%), whilst just over a fifth reported an increase in ill-health absence.

Unfortunately, older workers aren’t going to go away so employers will just have to accept that these are now facts of working life.

One wonders if it was the way the survey was worded and the way the results are being reported, but didn’t the other half (who don’t want DRA reinstated) have anything positive to say about older workers?

Some good news media support would go some way to supporting the cause of older workers and overcoming negative perceptions amongst the unconverted

See: http://www.workplacelaw.net/content/46850

The report recommends, amongst much else, that the 2015 government establishes two Commissions – one to consider the financial aspects of our ageing population and the other to focus on health and social care. However, having pointed out elsewhere in the report that employer and societal attitudes – and lack of flexibility – continue to impact older people’s ability to work longer, I believe there should also be a third Commission to focus urgently on this aspect.

We need a change in attitudes overall to ensure that older people aren’t seen as dependent, needy and a liability but are recognised for what the majority are – active, contributing citizens. Let’s hope that this report leads to action – and isn’t just yesterday’s news.

The report can be downloaded here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201213/ldselect/ldpublic/140/140.pdf 

It can also be browsed here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201213/ldselect/ldpublic/140/14002.htm

A recently published article, Evaluating Six Common Stereotypes about Older Workers with Meta-Analytical Data by Thomas W.H. Ng (University of Hong Kong) and Daniel C. Feldman (University of Georgia) presents the findings of an analysis of around 400 studies of older workers’ performance.

The paper finds that nearly all negative stereotypes about this group are unfounded and suggests, as the number of older workers continues to increase, that managers should reconsider widely-held misconceptions that often lead to age discrimination.

The study examines six of the most common and damaging stereotypes: i.e. that, compared with younger workers, older employees are (1) less motivated, (2) less willing to engage in training and career development programs, (3) more resistant to change, (4) not as trusting, (5) more likely to experience health problems that affect their work, and (6) more vulnerable to work–family conflicts.

The authors found empirical support for only one of those stereotypes. Older workers, on average, are indeed less likely to engage in career development—an attitude that relates, at least in part, to training programs designed for younger employees. The five other stereotypes were unfounded.

For further information, see http://www.strategy-business.com/article/re00225?gko=70968

But these issues are global, affecting just about every developed nation and many lesser developed nations as well. And the ways in which other countries are attempting to grapple with the situation are as many and varied as there are nations. We should, therefore, look elsewhere and see whether we like the way things are going and whether they provide a good blueprint for us here.

One particularly pernicious avenue of discussion here, both in the media and amongst politicians (notably of the “two brain” variety), is to set “the young” versus “the old”, as though one camp can only gain if the other camp loses. This is no way to solve such problems, especially if it leads to the actual polarisation of society.

The following extract is taken from a recent report from DutchNews.nl concerning the political situation in Holland:

“Fears that pensioners are being hard hit by the government’s austerity measures continue to boost support for the 50Plus party, according to a new opinion poll.

The TNS-Nipo poll says the fledgling party would win 24 seats in the 150-seat parliament if there were a general election tomorrow. That would make it the second biggest party in parliament, behind the VVD Liberals on 28. The party debuted in parliament at the September general election and has two seats.

The Labour party (PvdA), which currently partners the VVD in the coalition government, would be third with 23. The Labour leader caused a stir earlier this week when he said the over-50s are the richest group in the country.

The TNS-Nipo poll puts the Socialists in fourth place on 19 seats and the anti-immigration PVV fifth with 16.”

Despite an attempt a few years ago to set up an “older persons” party in the UK (which appears to have sunk without trace) we must hope that British democracy is better than this. Just look above at who came fifth in the poll, only a few seats behind!

These days the line between work and retirement is increasingly difficult to define. How, when and in what manner it occurs is less certain than in the past. Its very meaning has changed with many people continuing to work even though they claim to have ‘retired’.

And, despite its inevitability in one form or another, many individuals still fail to plan adequately for its arrival. For example, a new report from financial services company MGM Advantage claims that “three in five (60%) over 55s admit to being unprepared for retirement”.

Thus the relevance to those interested in older workers of a valuable and interesting new book: The Psychology of Retirement – coping with the transition from work*. It is written by Derek Milne who retired as the Director of the Newcastle University Doctorate in Clinical Psychology training programme in 2012.

Unlike most other guides to retirement which tend to deal with the practicalities of growing older outside of full-time work, this enlightening handbook tackles the unspoken issue that many people find the transition to a happy and fulfilling retirement difficult and stressful.

In response, the book draws on proven psychological coping strategies to aid the process of coping with retirement, ensuring that individuals are able to gain a better understanding of the realities of retirement and maximize their enjoyment of a key period of life.

Incorporating the author’s personal experience, real-life case studies, the latest research and well-established theories, The Psychology of Retirement provides many insights and much food for thought concerning the nature of retirement and the new challenges and opportunities it represents.

* published by Wiley (February 2013).

MGM’s Retirement Nation Report 2012: http://www.mgmadvantage.co.uk/island/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Retirement-Nation-2012.pdf

If nothing else it’s good to see that the DWP hasn’t entirely abandoned the issue now that the legislation has been introduced and the topic is no longer ‘flavour of the month’.

The guidance is drawn from employers who report clear business benefits from effectively managing an ageing multi-generational workforce. It provides answers to employer questions and offers non-bureaucratic solutions tried and tested by employers of various sectors and sizes.

It also addresses misconceptions about employing older workers concerning productivity, up-skilling, health and ‘blocking’ opportunities for younger workers.

It’s called Employing Older Workers:  An employer’s guide to today’s multi-generational workforce and is available at http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/employing-older-workers.pdf

Although it is a US publication, this report – Flex strategies to attract, engage and retain older workers from the Sloan Center on Aging and Work at Boston College – is well worth a read.

You can access it at

http://www.bc.edu/content/dam/files/research_sites/agingandwork/pdf/publications/flex_case.pdf

On the plus side they have highlighted how this will simplify an antiquated and largely unintelligible system so complicated and intrusive that many potential beneficiaries have chosen not to claim what they are entitled to. They have also drawn our attention to the transitional arrangements which are necessary and in which some people will appear to be winners and some losers (against expectations rather than against fact?). This is fine and necessary to make sure that in the changeover process all obvious inequities are dealt with and corrected.

As with all political initiatives such as this, first we get the good news regarding the move to a flat rate pension and then the not-so-good news that National Insurance contributions will have to increase to fund some of it. This does rather take the icing off the cake.

More worrying, though, are the views, already being expressed, that firstly the state pension is not enough (which we know or should do) and, linked to this, that not everyone should get this flat rate pension, that is a return to means testing. I had thought that for once, at long last, people had started to look at our demographic shift and its implications in a more statesmanlike fashion devoid of entrenched short term party politics – but it seems this is a very optimistic hope.

Such views totally miss the long term point of the changes. The flat rate state pension will never be enough on its own unless we tax people out of existence. However, by underpinning personal savings with this pension and then not confiscating it once individuals start to save for themselves we can give people the responsibility, the scope and the encouragement to plan themselves for their own financial well-being according to their own needs, choices and timeframes. And in what manner they choose, be it pensions, properties or direct investment.

In the article, Caroline Gumble, HR director of manufacturing organisation EEF, highlights the need for employers to be “hotter” on performance management if they are to avoid leaving themselves open to potential ageism cases such as this.

Ms Gumble is undoubtedly right in as much as this case will probably encourage employees to bring cases against their employers where they feel they have experienced ageism. Employers who have not exercised good performance management prior to terminating the contracts of older employees may well find themselves with scant defence to offer.

However, like the Miriam O’Reilly case a couple of years ago where the BBC was sued for dropping a presenter for reasons of both ageism and sexism, there are issues in this case that are undoubtedly unique to the nature of the media. For example, how can a media channel replace a presenter when they feel a need for some new blood and a fresh approach if they are constrained by potential claims of ageism? And at what age does ageism kick in – presumably it must be linked entirely to the nature of the programme?

It will be interesting to see the outcome of this case, but even more interesting will be finding out the extent to which improved performance management would make any difference at all in relation to this type of media role.

For HR Magazine article click here

In 2013 12 UK universities will be getting together to form a new company that will offer the online courses – under the brand name of FutureLearn Ltd. The universities are: Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, East Anglia, Exeter, King’s College London, Lancaster, Leeds, Southampton, St Andrews and Warwick, along with UK distance-learning organization The Open University (OU).

Several U.S. universities including Harvard and MIT are already involved with MOOCs as are a few other UK universities but this will apparently be the first large group to set up a dedicated MOOC business located in the UK.

Details of courses and operations are yet to be finalised but the OU said FutureLearn will be open to students in the UK and internationally. It will:

• bring together a range of free, open, online courses from leading UK universities, that will be clear, simple to use, and accessible.
• draw on the OU’s expertise in delivering distance learning and pioneering open education resources to underpin a unified, coherent offer from all of its partners.
• reimagine class-based learning rather than trying to replicate it online – using the potential of digital technologies.

Commenting on the development, Martin Bean, the Vice Chancellor of The Open University said: “MOOCs represent an enormous development in higher education, one that has the potential to bring about long-lasting change to the HE sector.” 

The potential role of MOOCs in ongoing learning and upskilling, particularly for older workers is theoretically vast and could be a key tool for helping people stay in work for longer. Let’s hope that this is borne in mind by those designing and marketing the courses.

Read more at http://techcrunch.com/2012/12/13/12-u-k-universities-forge-moocs-alliance-futurelearn-consortium-will-offer-uni-branded-open-online-courses-starting-next-year/

The piece starts with the story of a sixty year old who in order to nail a CEO job for which he was extremely well qualified felt he had to shave his head. Later, he “traded in his button-down shirts for T-shirts, made sure he owned the latest gadgets, and got an eyelid lift.”

Later on in the piece, an advisor recommends that to gain employment and credibility in this job market older applicants should “carry a backpack, not a briefcase …Avoid Blackberries and Dell laptops in favor of Android phones and Apple products. And above all, steer clear of wristwatches, which most younger people have replaced with the clocks on their phones.”

A 40 year old female recommends dressing young. For her first interview at Facebook, this market researcher “headed to a boutique popular with women 20 years her junior for advice on “something to look hip” and blend in.

She ditched her tailored pants and blouses for a dress, tights, and biker boots. She then got second and third interviews “and had to come up with more hipster outfits.”

Ignoring the fact that 40 is hardly old, this piece raises the issue of the extent to which ageism is a reaction to chronological age or simply reflective of the fact that people want to employ people who are like them.

In Silicon Valley, if this article is to be believed, this is taken to a farcical level and surely must be unsustainable from the older applicant’s perspective; but nevertheless the argument has some weight in other workplaces.

But – how much should older people be expected to adapt to younger models; and, more importantly, where should it stop?

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/11/27/us-valley-ageism-idUSBRE8AQ0JK20121127

It says: “More people staying on at work for longer is causing a bottleneck at the lower end of the career ladder, with young people missing out on promotion opportunities because their older colleagues are not moving on.”

This reiteration of the “lump of labour” theory that asserts that there are only so many jobs to go round and therefore by continuing to work older people are displacing younger people is wearisome and wrong.  As Tony Watts points out in his comment on the article, plenty of research has been done to show that this is simply not the case.

However what this new ‘survey’ does underline is that employers need to become more imaginative about restructuring the nature of work, introducing a range of flexible options which people can take at various points throughout their career.

As plenty of studies have shown – including my own – many older people would welcome the opportunity to work differently as they age. All that is stopping them is a lack of employer-provided opportunities which would enable them to step out of full-time, full-on, highly pressurised jobs which are perhaps those to which their younger colleagues aspire.

Unfortunately, in respect of recruitment, age discrimination is still rife which means that, to return to the quote above, there are few openings for older people to ‘move on’ to. This being the case older people currently face a stark choice in respect of work: either continue in the job you have or retire and lose all expectation of ever working again.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/jobs/9722365/Business-Bring-back-the-retirement-age.html#disqus_thread

(e.g. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-20543308)

Such issues are extremely important as is the allied issue about older people sleepwalking towards an unhealthy old age by virtue of their inappropriate lifestyle choices.

There is no shortage of information on these topics but rather people just do not seem to want to put any effort into understanding these things, matters which are going to affect a great part of their lives in a very fundamental way. Rather like my disappointment at not winning the lottery can be largely explained by the fact that I don’t buy any lottery tickets so individuals must show greater commitment and take greater responsibility for their own future well-being.

We all know it’s boring, we all know the institutions have vested interests (note the focus here on pensions and not other forms of financial provision) and we all know it can be difficult – but not that difficult, not the basics anyway!

So that people can get their heads around some of the issues I attach below the link to a brief description which I wrote a few years ago and which has not changed in the slightest way – except become more urgent.

http://www.inmyprime.info/factSheets/biscuit.htm

The report found that each year those approaching and in retirement give society on average 75 hours of charitable work at a value of £5.7 billion and 73 hours of voluntary community work at a value of £5.5 billion. Most significantly, they provide a massive 326 hours in free care for grandchildren, parents and other family members, saving the family economy £15.5 billion in the last year.

Yet despite this contribution, the majority of older people feel undervalued by society. Two-thirds (65%) feel they are treated badly by politicians, while four in ten (42%) feel that society treats them badly. A further third (34%) feel they are poorly portrayed by the media.

Commenting on these findings Aston Goodey, director of MGM Advantage, said: “It seems £27 billion’s worth of unpaid care, voluntary and charity appears to go unnoticed by society, politicians and the media, with millions of retirees experiencing a significant lack of respect.”

The implications of the withdrawal of this input would be huge for society as a whole, and fortunately is unlikely to happen. But taking such a massive contribution for granted is insulting. Is this just another case of what doesn’t cost isn’t valued? How should older people react?

For futher information see The Retirement Nation 2012 report www.retirementnation.co.uk

There’s something of a fairy-tale quality about the phrase “living for a hundred years” and thinking about the implications shows that a good fairy with a magic wand might be required for ensuring a long and happy life for today’s babies who are going to experience such longevity.

The report anticipates that as people face the challenge of saving for their first home and paying off student loans (which at around £73,000 will take until average age 52), ‘an increasing proportion will either have no children or just one child’.  

They will also need to find money to save for a pension and to continue to work longer in some capacity in order to fund living comfortably for the longest anticipated retirements in history – up to three decades.

Naturally (as it comes from a financial products provider) the report’s main message is that these ‘new centenarians’ will need to start saving at the age of 25 to build up a decent pension to have any chance of being able to retire comfortably.

However, surely it is simplistic to think that this will be sufficient to deal with a change of such magnitude? It seems to me that innovation will be required in a number of areas, including:

·  Housing – in terms of both assisting younger people to get on the housing   ladder, and more flexible options for helping older people free up housing equity.

·  Education – a review of our current ‘university education at any cost’ culture and a greater emphasis on life-long learning

·  Working patterns – making part-time, flexible and contract roles throughout the career-span the norm, thereby enabling people to dip in and out of the workplace more easily – and to extend their working lives.

·  Spending patterns – a review of priorities e.g. although divorce rates remain high it is predicted that young centenarians will spend around £39,000 on their wedding (compared to their grandparents average of£4,400)!

· Attitudes to healthy living – to ensure that those later years are spent in some kind of good, or at least moderate, health.

Commenting on the report, leading economist and trend forecaster Steve Lucas of Development Economics suggests that today’s parents “should encourage their children to start understanding finance and stress the importance of saving from a young age”.

This sounds a worthy strategy but might it be undermined by the reality of today’s parents neither understanding financial matters sufficiently themselves, nor having the ability and/or will to save for their own old age?http://reference.scottishwidows.co.uk/docs/2012_11_new_centenarians.pdf

However, before anyone becomes too smug or complacent, other indications suggest that the pensions industry is already planning for anticipated life spans of 125 years!

They state: “With tumbling annuity rates and poor returns on savings, securing a comfortable retirement has become an ever more challenging task. More than a quarter (27%) of those who feel uncertain or negative about their current financial situation feel that the financial crisis has heavily impacted on their financial plans for retirement, while more than one in four (29%) stated they didn’t earn enough money throughout their career to save for later life. However, the majority (81%) of those who are pessimistic about their finances believe that they didn’t spend enough time planning for retirement.”

The research findings in themselves hardly tell us anything new. In the current economic climate retirement planning is a bit like writing your Christmas list when you’re a child; you know what you’d love to have but you also realise that you’re unlikely to get it – certainly not everything, anyway.

However, the findings also highlight a glaring dilemma in mentioning “tumbling annuity rates and poor returns on savings”. This being the case, even those who have ‘planned’ and put more money into pensions and savings will hardly be dancing with delight.

Overall, this news item only adds fuel to the argument that says we need to stop thinking of retirement savings purely in terms of pensions and current accounts and start thinking more creatively. Also older people need the option of continuing to work longer on a part-time basis rather than expecting a period of full-time retirement that currently may last several decades.

…What was that saying about not being able to solve a problem using the same thinking that created it?

I was attracted by the piece as it seems to me that this epitomises a common dilemma faced by many older people searching for work.

Often I’m asked for advice about how long older jobseekers should persist in sending out CVs and completing application forms in the face of employers’ general disinterest and lack of response. Where does the line lie in this situation between admirable persistence and perseverance and dogged stupidity and lack of acceptance of the situation?  

Although Rosabeth’s list (below) relates to projects and start-ups it nevertheless seemed to me to have some resonance for older people seeking work:

1. Are the initial reasons for the effort still valid, with no consequential external changes?
2. Do the needs for which this is a solution remain unmet, or are competing solutions still unproven or inadequate?
3. Would the situation get worse if this effort stopped?
4. Is it more cost-effective to continue than to pay the costs of restarting?
5. Is the vision attracting more adherents?
6. Are leaders still enthusiastic, committed, and focused on the effort?
7. Are resources available for continuing investment and adjustments?
8. Is skepticism and resistance declining?
9. Is the working team motivated to keep going?
10. Have critical deadlines and key milestones been met?
11. Are there signs of progress, in that some problems have been solved, new activities are underway, and trends are positive?
12. Is there a concrete achievement — a successful demonstration, prototype, or proof of concept?

Perhaps the unemployed over 50s would find it useful to have a similar checklist to help guide their thoughts. If so, what might it highlight? Are any of the above points relevant? Any views?

http://blogs.hbr.org/kanter/2012/10/12-guidelines-for-deciding-whe.html?goback=%2Enmp_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1_*1