Active ageing and promoting employability among silver workers

Abstract

Considering the demographic changes, there is a growing awareness about the need to expand the participation of silver workers in the labour market. The Europe 2020 strategy calls the attention to the need to match the lifelong working skills with the demands of the labour market. A recent article from the British government stated that there isn’t an immediate relation between productivity and skills but what is truly important is how companies really use their employees’ skills. In the European Commission report “New skills for new jobs” is also referred that it could be necessary to involve key intermediaries, such as education and training providers, in order to improve the use of skills in the workplace and to improve cooperation networks of employers to share good practices of skills’ management at the workplace. Other EU promoted researches suggest that it’s easier to increase the employment of silver workers, both male and female, if employers and employees are made aware and believe in the advantages of keeping the current job rather than seeking public intervention to create specific jobs for silver workers outside the labour market. Reflecting on the significant increase of senior citizens and the decrease of the workforce, priorities should be lined up to overcome economical, employability and social challenges that emerge from the demographic changes. Governments and companies must adapt to the trends in the workforce, providing an answer to the new challenges of an ageing population, such as the need to adjusted products and services and working and living conditions. The increase of the employment rate is a political goal in all Member States, as stated by the Europe 2020 strategy. The sustainability of the employment rate for silver workers requires an intervention from governments and from the private business sector, but depends as well as from the initiative of the employees themselves. From the private business sector is required the definition of business and human resources management strategies that provide the base conditions to ensure employees’ high performance throughout their life-cycle and that do not define the age as a handicap to productivity and a threat to competitiveness. To employees is required the management of their working life, the investment in education and the development of new skills required in the course of their working life.