Article Analysis
The article analysis of this week focuses on the inclusion of older employees within a company’s workforce. The inclusion of such employees had a two way impact. For instance, the existence of older employees in the workforce can help the organization assess its requirements for talented employee shortages, unwanted turnover and other recruitment related shortages. In certain industries the older workforce is playing an important role. For example, in the hospital and health care industry, older workers and even the retired people are often employed to help them run their operations more smoothly. This is mainly due to the severe shortage of capable workers in this field.
Hiring older workers and retirees for business operations is being increasingly used by the companies and other organizations. Proctor & Gamble is one such company which has moved towards hiring retired personnel and also older workers for the purpose of working on their short term assignments. This has been found to have reduced both their time and cost in the long run. Apart from this, companies like Volkswagen have also taken steps to ensure that proper knowledge transfer takes place between the current and the older work force. This would also ensure a knowledgeable base of current employees. In addition, retail industries face a high level of employee turnover. Under such circumstances, using older workers may help them to reduce their employee turnover as such employees are less likely to switch jobs as frequently as their younger colleagues.
The employees who are over the age of 50 have been found to have employee turnover which is around one tenth of their counterparts (Borders Group, 2010). This means a lower employee turnover for any company in which they work.
One of the primary issues to be considered is that the older employee who is hired for the job may not always be in the best of their health. This is because an older employee may have more health issues as opposed to their younger counterparts. The article also mentions about the interactions between the older and younger employees and the transfer of knowledge that takes place between the two parties. In fact, according to a recent survey which included the interview of 2000 employees, it has been found that there is a strong consensus in decision making between the older and younger employees.
In line with the level of experience that the older employees have, companies may also have more expectations from this. In a recent survey, it has been found that no level of enthusiasm can replace the experience which the older employees have. Therefore, the organization also has higher expectations from these employees as they are expected to give more knowledge and also train their younger employees at the same time and can turn to be invaluable assets for the company in the long run.
The article also mentions about some important tips which the older and experienced workers can use to ensure that they are able to maximize their values in the eyes of the organization in which they are serving and they as important to the business as are the other younger employees.
References
- How to Fight Age Discrimination. (2012). Retrieved on 13th February 2012 from http://www.forbes.com/sites/kerryhannon/2012/12/23/how-to-fight-age-discrimination/
