Employers need to devise a strategy for supporting their ageing workforce with immediate effect, according to Chris Minett, managing director of AgeingWorks.
Speaking at Employee Benefits’ Group risk debate, sponsored by MetLife, in September, he said: ”Employers must recognise which employees are being affected and provide proactive rather than reactive support.”
”What we’re actually keen to help [employers] understand is that when we’re talking about the impact an ageing society is having on organisations, it’s not just about older workers, but about four groups within an organisation that are being impacted by our ageing society and ageing issues.”
These groups include older workers, the sandwich generation, which has responsibility for dependent children and elderly parents; working carers and ex-pats.
“It is important [for employers] to recognise that there is very large chunk of the workforce that is being affected,” he said.
Minett was one of seven guests to attend the roundtable debate, which explored the latest trends and issues in the group risk market and formed the basis of a special report that was published with Employee Benefits.