Survey: Some 69 percent of workers consider their employers to be age friendly. Image: SmartPhotoLab/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffEmployers overall have a more positive view of whether their workplaces are friendly to older workers than do the workers themselves, says the TransAmerica Center for Retirement Studies, based on survey data from both groups.
“People have the potential to live longer than ever before, which is prompting a fundamental rethinking of how much time is spent in the workforce relative to retirement. Workers are seeking flexibility to manage work-life balance across life phases whether they are going to school, starting families, caregiving, or transitioning into retirement. Some workers are working beyond traditional retirement age and many more plan to do so albeit with a gradual transition,” it said.
While the surveys focused on private sector employers and employees, the trends are the same in the federal government—which overall has an older workforce than the private sector.
For example, 87% of employers “consider their companies to be “age-friendly” by offering opportunities, work arrangements, and training and tools needed for employees of all ages to be successful in their current role or contribution to the company. However, only 69% of workers consider their employers to be age friendly,” it said.
Similarly, 94% of employers “believe they are helpful in supporting their employees, including 51% that believe they are very helpful and 43% that believe they are somewhat helpful. In contrast, far fewer workers (76%) indicate their employers are helpful in supporting them achieve work-life balance, including 29% who feel they are very helpful and 47% who feel they are somewhat helpful.”
Other findings included that: six-tenths of employers do not offer a formal phased retirement program (the federal government offers one but it is little-used) with about half of those having no plans to offer one; only three-tenths pay special attention to potentially hiring applicants age 50 and older when recruiting; and about a third said they consider people to become “too old” to work at a certain age—with the median age they cited being 62.
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