Yahoo Finance How Employers Perceive Older Workers
Many workers would like to work past age 65 to sure up their retirement finances. Some employers are on board with this, with nearly a third saying they strongly support their employees continuing on the job after age 65, according to a Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies and Harris Poll survey of 1,022 business executives and 4,550 workers at for-profit companies that employ 10 or more workers. However, employees discern the situation differently, with fewer than a quarter saying their employers are strongly supportive of older workers. Here's how employers say they perceive workers age 50 and older.
[Read: 10 Jobs You're at Risk of Losing as You Age.]
Knowledgable. Many older workers have spent decades in their industry. Over half of employers (53 percent) say older workers bring more knowledge, wisdom and life experience to the company than their younger counterparts.
Responsible. Companies count on their employees to complete specific tasks in a timely manner. And half of companies (51 percent) say they appreciate that their older employees are responsible, reliable and dependable.
Mentors. Employers hope that their talented older employees will pass on their skills to the younger generation. Many companies recognize that their oldest employees are a valuable resource for training and mentoring (48 percent) those with less experience.
Institutional knowledge. Workers who have been with the same company for a decade or more have valuable knowledge about the strategies that failed and succeeded in the past and are familiar with the pathways to get tasks accomplished. Some 41 percent of companies say they value the institutional knowledge their long-tenured employees bring to the job.
[See: 10 Jobs Hiring Older Workers.]
High health care costs. People are more likely to incur health problems as they age, and employers are apprehensive about the cost of their treatments. Some companies (29 percent) say they are concerned about the high health care costs of older employees. A few employers (10 percent) are also worried about the disability expenses associated with aging workers.
Team players. Older employees have had decades to learn how to work well with colleagues, and successful team players can become essential to the functioning of the company. Just over a quarter (28 percent) of employers say they think older employees are better at getting along with others in a team environment.
Overpaid. Experienced employees often command higher salaries. Just over a quarter (26 percent) of companies say they are worried about the higher wages aging employees might feel they are due.
Outdated skills. A few employers say they think their older employees have outdated skill sets (10 percent) and are less open to learning and new ideas (9 percent). Fortunately for older workers, this is one negative attribute you can combat with continued education.
[See: The Best Cities for Retirement Jobs.]
Large companies with 500 or more employees were especially likely to have a pessimistic view of their older workers, with 62 percent having some negative perceptions about workers age 50 and older, compared to 51 percent of employers overall, Transamerica found. Most of the unfavorable attributes were related to the higher costs associated with older employees, including high salaries and a bigger potential for large health care and disability costs.
Emily Brandon is the author of "Pensionless: The 10-Step Solution for a Stress-Free Retirement."
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