Workers call for mandatory retirement age to be abolished
Age Action Ireland, which worked on the two-year study, said the “impact of compulsory retirement has on people cannot be underestimated”.
Companies in the public and private sector are losing some of their most valuable staff because of the age 65 embargo, according to the organisation’s chief executive Robin Webster.
“The forthcoming green paper on pensions provides a rare opportunity to co-ordinate our employment and pensions policies to enable older people to continue to work for as long as they wish,” Mr Webster said. “Such an approach would require greater flexibility and, more importantly, a positive attitude to older workers.”
Research conducted as part of the Senior Select, Retain and Retrain project showed 38% of firms considered promotion prospects for those over-50 to be less than for those under-50.
In the public sector, this figure rose to 41%, while in the retail sector they stood at 40%. However, six out of 10 companies did not perceive age to be an issue when recruiting staff.
The number of people aged over-65 is expected to increase by over 60% over the next 20 years, from 436,000 in 2002 to 698,000 in 2021. At present, just 8% of people, aged over-65, are still working.
The research project also calls for better supports for people when they are made redundant, improved age awareness in companies and the assisting of older workers in selling their experience. Older people must also be offered as much training as their younger colleagues, it concludes.
FÁS, ICTU, PARTAS and Contact Recruitment all participated in the EU-funded research.
IBEC social policy executive Finola McDonnell said her organisation actively encourages its members to recruit older workers because of their experience and loyalty.
“The accommodation of older people in the workforce is a growing challenge for employers because people are living longer and healthier lives, and are available to work much longer than was previously the case. There is no question that we have some way to go in convincing all employers that older workers have something valuable to offer,” she said.
The Equality Authority’s head of research Laurence Bond said that their cases relate to age-based discrimination.
“These case files include allegations by older people of age discrimination in access to employment and promotion, working conditions and discriminatory advertising. Employers must actively focus on non-discrimination and compliance with equality legislation,” he said.
