Getting older workers on track for training

It is an established business fact that learning, training and re-training are essential to a flexible and capable labour market.

However, older people, in particular, frequently get overlooked for training. There are unfortunately negative stereotypes about older workers being resistant to change and harder and more time consuming to train.

These are simply myths.

By 2010, 40 per cent of the workforce will be aged 45 and over. People are living longer and the average age of the workforce is rising. Employees aged over 50 are likely to stay with their employer until retirement providing up to 15 years or more labour.

Business success depends on keeping both older and younger workers up-skilled. To avoid skills shortages, businesses need to retain older workers in the workforce for longer. They need better training opportunities and recognition that they are a valuable resource for business success. Most skills have a three to five year shelf-life anyway, so it is worthwhile investing in anyone who is likely to stay at least that long.

Older workers are as successful in learning new skills, including new technologies, as younger workers. Where workers have not undertaken training for some time, it is easy to utilise small steps in learning to ensure that all workers reach the same level of performance and acquire qualifications in the same proportions.

There is no diminishment in productivity and capacity with age for most job functions. Only where older workers do not receive the same level of training as younger workers does their performance show a difference.

It is worth remembering that education and training was very different in the past, tending to be ëon-the-jobí and through apprenticeships. There were no computers and only a small percentage of those aged 50 and over achieved higher or advanced level educational qualifications.

However, research shows that older learners are effective learners once they start. They are as capable as younger adults of retaining and putting into practice what they have learned.

And this is where Age Positive comes in. Age Positive, as a Department for Work and Pensions initiative, is the only provider of free guidance on age.

Through Age Positive, the Government strongly promotes the business benefits of age neutral employment policies, and continues to encourage employers to make decisions that do not discriminate against people because of their age.

Today, workers are no longer prepared to accept that they must retire at a certain age. Many, when given the choice, opt to stay in work, continuing to develop their careers, becoming hugely beneficial to not only their employers, but to the national economy as a whole.

If you require further information, please visit the Age Positive website at www.agepositive.gov.uk or please email agepositive@agepositive.gov.uk. There is also a publication section on the website which features a range of brochures and documents that may be downloaded covering all areas of age diversity in the workplace.

Remember, assisting all employees to update existing skills and gain new skills will help them sustain productive and satisfying employment, and the benefits of training include:

- higher competence
- improved quality of service
- increased motivation and retention
- raised commitment
- reduced absenteeism