Older workers often receive inadequate support, even in workplaces that prioritise inclusion for other groups, research from the University of Sydney has shown.
"We’ve found that age is often completely absent from conversations about workplace diversity," said Professor Marian Baird, an expert in gender and employment relations at the University of Sydney Business School. "Many employers are taking important steps to create inclusive workplaces – for example, for women and people of diverse cultures and sexualities – but our research shows older workers are often ignored."
The findings are published in a new book, The Multigenerational Workforce: Managing Age and Gender at Work, edited by Professor Baird, Associate Professor Myra Hamilton and Alison Williams, all from the University’s Business School. The book was recently launched by Jodie Harrison, NSW Minister for Women, Seniors and the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault.
“We have an ageing population, and a generation of older people who want to stay active and working in a way that suits them,” said the Minister. “This book provides insights about our multigenerational workforce and how we can make our workplaces more inclusive, flexible and diverse to really tap into this opportunity.”
A new approach for an ageing workforce
Since 1991, the share of older workers in the Australian labour market has doubled, with the largest increase in workers aged 55-64. Nevertheless, policies and practices relating to older workers tend to focus on retirement rather than supporting participation, productivity and engagement.
“We need to stop pretending workers are heading out the door by age 55,” said sociologist and social policy researcher Associate Professor Hamilton. “Workers of every generation are interested in opportunities for training and progression, but older workers are sometimes stereotyped as not worth investing in.”
The Multigenerational Workforce draws on a seven-year examination of six Australian organisations, including government-owned corporations and a national law firm. The researchers conducted interviews with managers and workers, as well as surveys, and reviews of policies and practices.
We need to stop pretending workers are heading out the door by age 55. Workers of every generation are interested in training and progression.
Associate Professor Myra Hamilton
The University of Sydney Business School
“We need to stop pretending workers are heading out the door by age 55. Workers of every generation are interested in training and progression.”Associate Professor Myra Hamilton
The University of Sydney Business School
How to create age-inclusive workforces
The researchers found that older workers are given fewer opportunities for training and career development, and often face discrimination during recruitment.
Women are increasingly working for longer and driving the growth of the ageing workforce. But older women face particular challenges, often juggling work with caring responsibilities for grandchildren and older spouses or relatives. The research identified a need for workplaces and policymakers to broaden their understanding of caregivers beyond parents of young children.
“Older workers’ caring responsibilities tend to be unacknowledged,” said Associate Professor Hamilton. “But we know that 45-64-year-olds – particularly women – provide most elder and disability care. Existing provisions for working carers often don’t cater to those responsibilities. In Australia, carers leave is restricted to circumstances related to illness, injury or emergency, and may not include tasks such as taking older relatives to routine medical appointments.”
To create age-inclusive workforces, organisations should foster a culture that values diversity, while prioritising flexibility for everyone. Some organisations encouraged age inclusivity with initiatives such as grandparent leave, elder care leave and hybrid casual/part-time arrangements that let part-time workers increase their hours at will.
'At a certain age, you feel like you’ve earnt a bit of flexibility'
Christine Mayberry works for Lane Cove Libraries and, at 70, has no plans to retire. She spent years out of the workforce, looking after her four children. It left a hole in her superannuation that means she will keep working for years to come.
She is one of several older employees at the library and, said Mayberry, they receive strong support. She works four days a week as part of a job-share arrangement but can take on extra shifts when she wants them. When she was undergoing treatment for bowel cancer, she was able to take a year off, topping up her sick leave with long-service leave at half pay.
“When you get to a certain age, you do feel like you’ve earnt a little bit of flexibility,” she said.
She has had opportunities for training and development, including a recent course on digital access for children in libraries. She has sometimes found that younger colleagues make unfair assumptions about her tech skills and step in unasked to do jobs she is able to handle.
While Mayberry’s experience has largely been positive, many workplaces are less accommodating, with consequences for retention, morale, performance and productivity.
“If your diversity policy doesn’t consider age, you might be improving the working lives of some but not others,” said Professor Baird. “Inclusive multigenerational workplaces keep older workers from running out the door and taking their experience with them.”
Declaration: Research supported by the Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence in Population Ageing Research (project number CE170100005)
