Older Workers
Study of Hennepin County shows older workers could help address
state workforce shortage
Helping Minnesotans to work
longer before retirement can benefit the state’s economy and also support
workers who lack sufficient savings to retire.
That’s a finding of a recent study conducted for the Minnesota
Board on Aging by Humphrey School of Public Affairs students in partnership
with Hennepin County.
“Addressing the looming worker shortage will require continued
focus if Minnesota’s economy is to remain vibrant,” the report says. “To ensure
adequate numbers of employees in the next decade, Minnesota employers will need
to offer compensation and benefits to attract and retain older workers. This
will mean more flexible work schedules, benefits that may include health
insurance … the possibility of working remotely and other flexible workplace
offerings.”
The study found Minnesota is one of the nation’s top 10 states in
its proportion of baby boomers — people born between 1946 and 1964 — to the
general population. This is reflected in Hennepin County government, where more
than a third of some 8,000 workers are over 55. Furthermore, because many older
county workers hold leadership positions, the county’s leadership ranks will be
greatly affected by retirements in the coming decade, the report said.
“The
Minnesota Board on Aging welcomes these findings as it charts a path to 2030,
when baby boomers begin to turn 85,” said Kari Benson, executive director of
the Minnesota Board on Aging. “Support is needed for the many Minnesotans who
want to remain employed out of economic necessity and/or because it contributes
significantly to the community and to the individual’s quality of life.”
County leaders who were surveyed view older workers as having
experience and resilience as well as mentoring, customer service and
communications skills. Nearly 64 percent of survey respondents said it is
important to encourage older employees to stay in the workplace past
traditional retirement age to meet department needs. Challenges to employing
older workers include their occasional inability to adapt to workplace changes
such as new technology as well as physical limitations and taking time off to
care for older parents. However, respondents said these challenges depend on
the individual and in some cases affect younger workers, including those who
need to take time off for child care.
“This report makes a compelling case that all employers should
recognize retirees and older workers as a valuable talent resource to be relied
upon for their institutional knowledge and mentoring skills for new workers,”
said Michael Rossman, Hennepin County chief human resources officer. “With a
pending worker shortage in our region, this is not a population of talent to be
overlooked and is one to be engaged.”
Hennepin County already works
to attract older workers with such approaches as flexible workplaces, ability
to work remotely, phased retirement and limited duration contracts. The study
noted that most successful retention and recruitment efforts, such as flexible
work times and places, training and other features, benefit younger as well as
older workers.
The report recommends the Minnesota Board on Aging:
-
Support
policies that benefit older workers, particularly provisions that help
lower-income workers who lack sufficient retirement savings and who will
therefore benefit the most from staying in the workforce past retirement
age;
- Advise
and educate partners and other Minnesotans on the workplace shortage and
opportunities for employers to use older workers;
- Develop
a common language about the value of older workers; and
- Continue
research on the topic, leveraging the University of Minnesota as a
resource, and involve Minnesota non-profit, for-profit and other public
sector employees.
The report recommends Hennepin County:
-
Continue
to celebrate the value of older workers;
- Clarify
work expectations by developing conversation guidelines for returning
older workers and their managers as a way to clarify roles, work tasks and
differences between full-time and part-time responsibilities;
- Encourage
two-way mentoring to promote greater understanding and respect among all
employees; and
- Continue
communications regarding the worker shortage and solutions.
Read the report here: Older Workers – A Key to Bridging the Workforce Gap
