Organisations
will increasingly have to provide older employees with flexible working
arrangements if they want to recruit and retain the best talent in an ageing
labour pool.
A
study by global workplace consulting firm Drake Beam Morin reveals significant
differences in career expectations and realities among workers of different
generations.
The
survey of nearly 16,000 executives, professionals and managers in 21 countries
shows that mature workers born before 1946 are more likely to seek flexible
working situations such as part-time work, self employment and consulting.
Only
27 per cent of mature workers want to work full-time, compared to 48 per cent
of baby boomers, born between 1946 and 1964, and 53 per cent of members of
Generation X, who were born between 1965 and 1981.
Tony
Gould, MD of DBM, told Personnel Today that companies will have to value their
older employees if they want to compete in the war for talent.
He
said, "I don’t think that many organisations have taken it on board that
because of the changes in the demographic population before very long there is
going to be a shortage of young people in the workforce. It will be compensated
for by the older generation.
"Older
workers today have a much younger and more energetic perspective than someone
of their age a generation ago. They still have a lot to contribute to the
workforce. They are more flexible in terms of their outlook and what they are
prepared to undertake."
The
research reveals that workers over the age of 50 take nearly twice as long to
identify and secure new employment positions as their younger counterparts aged
under-30.
According
to the research, more than half of matureÂ
workers cite networking as their main way of finding new job
opportunities, compared to 36 per of Generation X employees.
Younger
workers are more likely to rely on advertisements and recruitment firms for
when seeking a new job.
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