Is the rising retirement age a good thing for employers?
  1. Blog
  2. Employee Benefits and Wellbeing
  3. Is the rising retirement age a good thing for employers?

Retirement just got a little bit further away for some of us. That’s right the retirement age just increased so a lot of us will be affected.

It’s a difficult time of life to find a job, especially if there’s a host of younger work talent that is rising through the ranks. However, employers can get a fair deal from employing someone with a few more years of work under their belt. And with new research showing that there may be a few more in the job market, now could be a time to consider the benefits.

Years of experience – in life and work

It makes perfect sense: older people have been around for longer so have more experience. This means they bring years and years of knowledge of your chosen field, and how it’s changed, to your business. For a growing business this could be vital; they’ve already made or seen the mistakes so know exactly how to avoid them.

This could sound like an ‘older is wiser’ cliché, but wouldn’t you agree that it seems perfectly plausible? It’s not just about experience either – with it comes a sense of perspective that could potentially lead your employee to be a bit less stressed at work.

With a more level-headed approach to work life could even come benefits for your company. With someone who doesn’t just have years of work experience, but may also have ‘lived their life to the full’ already, could come a more stable employee. They may even be less likely to look for employment elsewhere, or have pressing commitments which mean they are off work for significant periods.

Making sure you have the right person for the job

However, how would you ensure that the benefits outweigh the downsides? A younger candidate could potentially be more IT savvy, and may even handle a faster paced work environment more readily.

Testing at interview level is essential to ensure you have the right candidate – as with anyone. Therefore, if you feel it’s necessary for your job you may consider doing psychometric testing or something similar to assess their work capacity. Obviously this would have to be implemented across the board regardless of age – not just for equality, but so you can actually compare too!

However you do it, make sure the testing is relevant to your business – and be fair at all times.

Our HR software can help to streamline the recruitment process, allowing you to send out offer letters and onboard your new employees efficiently.

Get in touch on info@citrushr.com or give us a call on 0333 014 3888 to find out more about our easy to use HR Software.

Or start your free trial today.

You might also want to read these articles

Get help with your HR

Take the stress out of HR with help from our friendly experts and easy to use HR software.
Find out more

X

  • Get free employment law alerts

    Keep up to date with employment law changes that might affect your business.