Now the culture has to change. As you are no doubt aware, October 1st 2006 saw the introduction of new laws banning age discrimination in the workplace. These new regulations provide employees and applicants with protection against discrimination, harassment and victimisation, either on the basis of actual age, or the age they appear to be.
However, legislation can only take us so far; ageism is part of a wider cultural problem. It is this that also needs to be addressed. Anne McGuire, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, makes the point most succinctly: "If we are to truly succeed, the myths that drive age discrimination in the workplace must be dispelled. We must... do as much as possible to change attitudes, not just behaviour."
The Research
Let us quickly tackle one myth. There is a continuing perception that older workers are of less value than their younger counterparts; this is inaccurate. As far back as 1989, research that analysed the findings of 96 independent studies that reported a relationship between age and job performance concluded that these two factors were generally unrelated. However, it is clear that the negative perception of the 'older worker' persists. A new research model by Suzanne Peterson and Barry Spiker, reputed academics in the fields of management and organisational behaviour, aims to eradicate this myth, They argue that the additional human capital that older workers bring to an organisation can be of measurable benefit. This human capital has four aspects:
1. Psychological Capital
Employee behaviour that has a positive impact on organisational success is affected by four psychological capital capacities - confidence in ones ability, hope for the future, optimism for success, and resilience to persevere. The researchers argue that older workers, as compared to their younger colleagues, often possess more of these capacities. Whilst younger workers are enthusiastic, they tend to show more general apathy toward work. By contrast, older workers, when given the right opportunities, tend to remain confident in their abilities, are optimistic and hopeful about the future, and are resilient enough to deal with the ups and downs of modern business.
2. Intellectual Capital
Intellectual capital encompasses an employee's experience, skills, knowledge, intuition and attitudes developed over a lifetime. Organisations aid the development of intellectual capital by effectively investing in learning and development. It stands to reason that the older an employee, the more intellectual capital they will have amassed. As Bill Gates recently commented, if he lost his top 15 engineers, all of whom have been with the company for many years, there would no longer be a Microsoft Corp.
3. Emotional Capital
There is increasing evidence that the most successful employees are those that are highly motivated, have excellent interpersonal skills, take personal responsibility and are able to get on with others. Collectively termed 'emotional intelligence', such characteristics can contribute significant positive value to an organisation and the researchers argue that, as we grow older, we further develop these characteristics. To give a specific example, emotional intelligence is often linked to customer service and, according to recent data, older workers tend to demonstrate superior customer service.
4. Social Capital
Arguably a more abstract construct, social capital is the resources derived from a network of interpersonal relationships. As employees directly or indirectly work with others, the interpersonal relationships that exist between them are highly important to organisational success. Older workers are likely to have built up stronger and wider reaching social networks at work. In turn, they will have a greater understanding of the organisation's culture, history and norms and are more likely to take part in discretionary behaviour that helps co-workers but may not be officially recognized by the reward system.
How Can Human Assets Help?
It is all too easy to focus on the added administrative, procedural and logistical challenges that this new legislation presents. However, instead of the age discrimination laws being viewed as a new hurdle to overcome, they should instead be seen as a springboard for challenging attitudes towards ageism. Here, we have shown that older workers bring with them a unique set of skills and experience that should be embraced (alongside those skills of younger workers) if a company is to distinguish itself from its competitors. In order for organisations to maximize on available talent and achieve organisational success, they need to turn attention to attracting, developing and retaining workers of all ages.
Human Assets is a business psychology consultancy with nearly 20 years experience in choosing, developing and retaining talent. We are very conscious of the need to attract diversity and avoid discrimination. Through continual diversity proofing and by utilising the skills of a diversity expert, we can help you to identify and assess the skills and competencies you require for your organisation to succeed regardless of age, gender, disability or ethnicity.
If you would like to find out more, please contact our consultants on +44(0)20 7434 2122 or by email at enquiries@humanassets.co.uk.
Main Reference
Peterson, S. J. & Spiker, B.K. (2005). Establishing the Positive Contributory Value of Older Workers: A Positive Psychology Perspective. Organisational Dynamics, Vol 34 (2), pp 153-167.
Further Reading
BBC News:
Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State Viewpoint
Age Discrimination Quick Guide
Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development:
Diversity and Equality Resources
Warr, P. Job Performance and the Ageing Workforce. In Chmiel, N. (Ed) (2000) Introduction to Work and Organisational Psychology. Oxford: Blackwell.