The position of older workers in the labour market is a significant cause of concern in most countries. The pensions system is facing enormous challenges from the rapid increase in the ageing population. The current economic crisis has even made it worse, forcing most older workers out of the labour market into non-employment or early retirement.

Promoting employability and encouraging workers to work longer are becoming most policymakers’ priorities. Training targeting older workers should assist in attaining these goals. Ageing support courses will refresh the workforce and help reduce the performance-pay gap.

Why should older workers get job training?

Employers’ perspective tends to be pretty straightforward. Corporate executives seem to believe that older workers cannot perform as much as young workers. As they put it, ‘why bother training aged workers when they will soon retire? However, evidence is convincing that training courses targeted at older and experienced workers are beneficial for the employer, the worker, and society.

Experienced workers are enthusiastic about attaining additional training to refresh their skills and make themselves more beneficial to the employer. Eighty percent of workers aged between forty-five and sixty-four say that learning opportunity is central to their view of a perfect job. Moreover, seventy percent agree that job training is a critical element of that ideal job.

What are the potential consequences for employers?

Although the tradition of limiting training to inexperienced employees has been around us for some time, those who continue to sustain such tendencies are likely to pay a considerable price. According to the American Bureau of Labour Statistics, the growth rate of the labour force among older workers will be about 55% by 2024. Contrary, the overall labour force is poised to grow by merely 5% over the same period. Any employer that wishes to engage a motivated, disciplined, and skilled workforce cannot ignore these facts.

What are the benefits of training older workers?

Policies focused on delaying retirement, and demographic trends are increasing the average age of employers in the labour market. Therefore, human capital is becoming more reliant on skill upgrading rather than new recruits. Skill upgrades can cushion employers against the adverse effects of ageing on growth and productivity. As the economy shifts towards knowledge- and skill-intensive services, skill upgrades will help organisations adapt rapidly and build a workforce that is reactive to the increasing skill demand.

How do older workers learn?

In most industrialised countries, the workforce is ageing because of the efforts by policymakers to delay retirement. The trend is a cause for concern for both older workers and employers, considering that employability, skill, and productivity deteriorate with age. However, scientists believe that training programs that consider the unique learning needs of older workers can help them upgrade their skills. Therefore, age-targeted training might be the most appropriate tool to enhance the employment prospects of this population.

Policies targeted to retrain older workers need to be aligned in ways that meet the unique learning needs of older workers. Proved to be effective are courses that are job-related, self-paced, and work-integrated.

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