As the population ages and more people work later in life,
New Zealand’s workforce will include more people aged over 50.
Businesses can benefit from employing older people because they bring a strong work ethic, positive attitude and can boost workplace productivity by passing on important skills and knowledge to your team.
Three reasons to hire older workers
- They’re loyal, reliable and stay in jobs longer.
Older workers are motivated to continue earning as they are more likely to have financial commitments and families to support, which means they tend to stay in jobs longer.
- They bring experience and skills.
Older workers can provide a wealth of knowledge and skills that come with their lifetime of work experience. They can share their knowledge with younger teammates, helping boost productivity.
- They create a diverse workplace.
Having employees of different ages provides a balanced workplace, with a range of viewpoints, problem-solving skills, attitudes, and ideas.
Older workers are aged 50 and over
We call someone an ‘older worker’ to help people feel comfortable talking about age and using the term ‘older’. We know that people can make a valuable contribution to a workplace at any age.
Those aged 50 and older face unique circumstances and complex challenges in finding and staying in work.
At this age, people are more likely to face redundancy and age discrimination.
It can take longer for an older person to return to work and can mean accepting a role that is below their skill level or paid less.
An older worker may need to consider a career change or need flexibility in their work for a variety of reasons.
Older workers include those aged 50 and older. A quarter of people aged 65 and over are part of the workforce because they want or need to be.
There is no official retirement age in New Zealand and many people continue to work beyond the age of 65 because they want to or need to.
Knowing your business
The ageing workforce is something that all businesses are already facing. It is a good idea to assess your business readiness and how it is adapting to this change.
This involves knowing the age profile of your business – that means the age of your staff, the intentions of your older staff who are in critical roles, and any age-related trends when recruiting new staff or when staff leave your business.
The Ageing Workforce Review is an online self-assessment tool that can help you with this assessment. Answer the online survey and receive a tailored report with information, advice and links to resources.
Ageing Workforce Review(external link) — Better Work in Later Life
