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<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width=452><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>Published April 10, 2010
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>Firms not dealing with older workers: study
Few companies have formalised strategies that take into account the ageing of the workforce, says author of report
By CHUANG PECK MING
GOVERNMENTS in Asia - including Singapore - have long recognised the challenges of an ageing population. But companies in the region have been slow to respond to them, according to a study.
<TABLE class=picBoxL cellSpacing=2 width=100 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR class=caption><TD>STAYING PRODUCTIVE
To remain competitive, organisations need to prepare for the shift in the age of the population, says the report</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>'The impact on business - the way companies operate and the markets they serve - will be huge,' said Kate Vernon, author of the study entitled Ageing: Impact on Companies in Asia.
'Yet our research has shown that few companies have formalised strategies that take into account the ageing of the population,' she said.
'Older employees represent an increasingly significant component of the workforce and companies should be looking to introduce policies and programmes that reflect this.'
The report - launched yesterday by Community Business, a leading non-profit organisation specialising in corporate social responsibility - says most companies continue to show bias against older workers and prefer to hire young ones.
It warns that such discrimination is poor business practice and fails to tap fully the contributions of older workers.
'To remain competitive, all organisations need to prepare for the shift in the age of the population,' the report says.
'This means creating age-diverse workplaces that encourage and enable older employees to stay in the workplace and contribute to the growth of the company for longer.'
The report says an ageing population will result in a big loss of expertise and a shortage of young talent.
Traditional retirement ages will have to be extended and allowance made for workers to take care of elderly parents, it adds.
The report recommends steps to make workplaces more inclusive for all ages. These are:
Conduct an age profile analysis;
Review policies and processes to ensure they are age-neutral;
Implement a focused recruitment effort;
Promote an age-friendly culture;
Ensure a favourable working environment;
Consider job design;
Offer appropriate benefits and incentives;
Encourage workers to take charge of health and well-being;
Provide alternative working arrangements;
Help workers remain on the job through skills development;
Facilitate the productive co-existence of a multi-generational workforce;
Engage older workers and give them a voice;
Manage the retirement process pro-actively; and
Find a way to retain or transfer critical knowledge within the organisation.
'If the challenges posed by the changing demographics of the workplace are not powerful enough reasons to address the impact of the ageing workforce, perhaps looking at the impact on the marketplace presents a more compelling argument,' the report says.
The mature and elderly will come to account for a bigger share of the consumer base - and offer bigger opportunities for companies, it points out. Yet historically the older market segment has been overlooked, it says.
'It is becoming clear that companies that continue to fail to recognise the potential spending power of this segment of the market do so at the detriment of their own business,' the report says.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
</TD></TR><TR><TD vAlign=top width=452 colSpan=2>Firms not dealing with older workers: study
Few companies have formalised strategies that take into account the ageing of the workforce, says author of report
By CHUANG PECK MING
GOVERNMENTS in Asia - including Singapore - have long recognised the challenges of an ageing population. But companies in the region have been slow to respond to them, according to a study.
<TABLE class=picBoxL cellSpacing=2 width=100 align=left><TBODY><TR><TD>
</TD></TR><TR class=caption><TD>STAYING PRODUCTIVETo remain competitive, organisations need to prepare for the shift in the age of the population, says the report</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>'The impact on business - the way companies operate and the markets they serve - will be huge,' said Kate Vernon, author of the study entitled Ageing: Impact on Companies in Asia.
'Yet our research has shown that few companies have formalised strategies that take into account the ageing of the population,' she said.
'Older employees represent an increasingly significant component of the workforce and companies should be looking to introduce policies and programmes that reflect this.'
The report - launched yesterday by Community Business, a leading non-profit organisation specialising in corporate social responsibility - says most companies continue to show bias against older workers and prefer to hire young ones.
It warns that such discrimination is poor business practice and fails to tap fully the contributions of older workers.
'To remain competitive, all organisations need to prepare for the shift in the age of the population,' the report says.
'This means creating age-diverse workplaces that encourage and enable older employees to stay in the workplace and contribute to the growth of the company for longer.'
The report says an ageing population will result in a big loss of expertise and a shortage of young talent.
Traditional retirement ages will have to be extended and allowance made for workers to take care of elderly parents, it adds.
The report recommends steps to make workplaces more inclusive for all ages. These are:
Conduct an age profile analysis;
Review policies and processes to ensure they are age-neutral;
Implement a focused recruitment effort;
Promote an age-friendly culture;
Ensure a favourable working environment;
Consider job design;
Offer appropriate benefits and incentives;
Encourage workers to take charge of health and well-being;
Provide alternative working arrangements;
Help workers remain on the job through skills development;
Facilitate the productive co-existence of a multi-generational workforce;
Engage older workers and give them a voice;
Manage the retirement process pro-actively; and
Find a way to retain or transfer critical knowledge within the organisation.
'If the challenges posed by the changing demographics of the workplace are not powerful enough reasons to address the impact of the ageing workforce, perhaps looking at the impact on the marketplace presents a more compelling argument,' the report says.
The mature and elderly will come to account for a bigger share of the consumer base - and offer bigger opportunities for companies, it points out. Yet historically the older market segment has been overlooked, it says.
'It is becoming clear that companies that continue to fail to recognise the potential spending power of this segment of the market do so at the detriment of their own business,' the report says.
</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>
