Mimic retirement perks to retain older workers, says expert

Aged care has an older workforce compared to the national average, and one that’s ageing faster. A consultant has some sage advice for providers seeking to engage their older workers.

Aged care has an older workforce compared to the national average, and one that’s ageing faster. A consultant has some sage advice for providers seeking to engage their older workers.

With a third of the nurses and care workers in community aged care aged 55 years or older, and similarly high rates in residential aged care, providers are increasingly looking for new and effective ways to keep their older workers engaged.

Dr Caroline Howe
Dr Caroline Howe

However the trick may be for organisations to start to mimic the qualities that people value in retirement in order to encourage them to stay at work, according to Dr Caroline Howe, a lecturer in rehabilitation counselling at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Sydney and executive director of occupational consultants ThinkHowe.

Dr Howe, who has researched work-to-retirement transitions and the psychological health of workers compared to retirees, said that people were typically happier in their retirement. Retirees valued having the choice to do what they wanted to do, as well as flexibility to organise their time in a way that suited them, she said.

In fact, retirees eventually came to value this flexibility more than the money they were earning, so much so that at a certain point in time they found work no longer attractive, she said.

Dr Howe will tell the Models to Support the Ageing Workforce conference next week that, when it comes to designing jobs to meet the needs of older workers, employers need to first ask their staff what they value, and then come up with innovative ideas to match that.

Employers also need to think about accessible workplaces, irrespective of age and ability, she said. “Once you design a workplace that is accessible, then age doesn’t play a big role anymore,” Dr Howe told Australian Ageing Agenda on Monday.

“There is a big misconception that age in Australia is the problem… but if you are 40 and obese, have high blood pressure and are not exercising you are more of a risk than the 60-year-old who is doing a little bit of weight training, eating healthy and walking every day.”

Dr Howe challenged conventional wisdom in health and aged care, such as care workers being required to work eight-hour shifts. With a significant number of staff aged over 50, why could the sector not make greater use of four or six-hour shifts, she asked. “Where is the logic that says you need to do eight-hour shifts?” she said.

Discussing organisational culture and how aged care providers could create “age inclusive cultures”, Dr Howe said employers had to avoid thinking of age as a problem.

“If you are finding that a staff member who is older is not managing with their role, and there is high risk, then you have a risk management problem, or an injury management program – not an age problem. What age does is highlight the systems within your organisation that are not strong enough to cope with the challenges of an older body,” she said.

Fast facts: Aged care’s older workforce

  • The aged care workforce is generally older than the national workforce and ageing faster, but the majority of staff assess their health as very good or excellent
  • The median age for direct care workers in residential aged care is 48 years and in community aged care is 50 years
  • 27 per cent of the direct care workforce in residential aged care is 55 years or older, which increased from 23 per cent in 2007
  • 33 per cent of the direct care workers in community aged care is aged 55 or older, an increase from 29 per cent in 2007

SOURCE: 2012 National Aged Care Workforce Census and Survey

Models to Support the Ageing Workforce takes place 29-31 July in Melbourne. Australian Ageing Agenda is the conference media partner.

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Tags: age inclusive cultures, ageing-workforce, Dr Caroline Howe, Models to Support the Ageing Workforce, older workforce, ThinkHowe, university-of-sydney,

2 thoughts on “Mimic retirement perks to retain older workers, says expert

  1. Valuable contribution to addressing the current prejudices and misconception about ageing. We hope that life and work experience of 50+ year old persons including those that have joined us from overseas, will be valued appropriately in the very near future.
    Australian Multicultural Community Services Inc, Melbourne

  2. The concept is reasonable. I value my work in aged care and am a very mature person. The wage is low @ $21.95ph and my work is Diversional Therapy. My reason for working is that i can make a difference every day of my life in the age care sector. I also value my other life, outside of working hours, therefore I work part time. I continue to connect with large organisations FECCA, Palliative Care Consortium, Alzheimers Association etc. I am continually learning. I guess my question is now that I am a very mature worker it is really worth working for the amount above? Yes I can make a difference every day and that is where the conundrum is – do I keep working? Do I retire? I know I will miss this area of work. It is challenging, rewarding, a win-win situation. Perhaps this is a way of rewarding myself – through work, but then again many of my friends have already retired and are enjoying the absolute freedom that comes with not having to put up with the politics of the age care sector.

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