As a global population, we are both living longer and getting older. According to the World Health Organization, the proportion of the world’s population that is over 60 will nearly double from 12 per cent to 22 per cent between 2015 and 2050.
Meanwhile, population growth is forecast to fall: UN data suggests fertility worldwide has dropped from an average of 5 births per woman to 2.3 between 1950 and 2021, with this expected to decline further to 2.1 by 2050.
With a shrinking labour pool and fewer younger workers contributing to the economy via taxation, it follows that employers will be competing for talent and individuals will be likely to remain in the workforce for longer.
The challenge for employers and HR professionals is to work out how to ensure that individuals, organisations and society flourish with an older workforce.
So what can HR professionals do to accelerate progress towards a successful age-diverse workplace?
BSI’s research looks into the ‘accelerating factors’ that will be pivotal to a successful age-diverse workforce. Its latest report, Evolving Together: Flourishing in the age-diverse workforce, indicates that flexibility about when, where and how much we work, along with government incentives and support for physical and mental health, will be key drivers to support people so they can remain a productive part of the workforce well into later life.
As Kate Field, global head human and social sustainability, BSI explains, there is a clear opportunity for businesses and governments to do so. “In response to the pandemic, many organisations introduced flexible policies,” she says. “Now is the opportunity to build upon them and make them work for the long-term. Change is a critical yet exciting opportunity, making clear the need for collaboration across society to shape a future of work that meets all our needs, whatever age or stage we are at.”
Reward and remuneration, along with policy levers around tax and financial arrangements, also have a critical role to play. Notably, there was strong emphasis across all markets on skills and retraining, which presents a clear opportunity for future-thinking organisations to get on the front-foot, especially as artificial intelligence shapes ways of working.
In the report, business leaders across sectors and markets made clear their desire for proactive moves to enable a flourishing future world of work. The age-diverse workforce is on its way; as BSI’s research shows, there are many strategies we can deploy to make it a success.
Download the free report Evolving Together: Flourishing in the age-diverse workforce.