Benefits July 11, 2006

Study Seeks Employer Attitudes Toward Older Workers

July 11, 2006 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The amount of time employees will have to work in order to secure enough money for retirement is climbing, but the way in which employers see these workers in terms of productivity, cost and attractiveness varies among white collar and rank-and-file workers.
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A new study by Boston College’s Center for Retirement Research surveyed 400 private sector employers to determine their attitudes toward older workers in the areas of productivity, cost and attractiveness.

There was a difference in perceptions of older workers at firms where more than 15% of the workforce is comprised of those 55 and older, compared to those with less than 15% of that age group in the workforce. And there was also a difference in attitude toward older white collar and rank-and-file workers.

The survey found that the way employers perceive these workers in terms of productivity are as follows:

White Collar Workers

  • 56% of companies with less than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said workers in that age group are more productive than their younger counterparts; 35% said equally as productive; 9% said less productive.
  • 63% of companies with more than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more productive than their younger counterparts; 33% said equally as productive; 4% said less productive.

Rank-and-File Workers

  • 40% of companies with less than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more productive than their younger counterparts; 39% said equally as productive; 21% said less productive.
  • 47% of companies with more than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more productive than their younger counterparts; 37% said equally as productive; 17% said less productive.

The survey also found that the perceptions of older workers were different among different-sized firms, with mid-sized firms (those with 100 to 1,000 employees) tending to give older rank-and-file employees the highest productivity ratings. The survey found that small and large firms were less generous with their productivity ratings.

When asked what they thought would most affect the productivity of older workers – for both rank-and-file and white collar workers – employers said the employee’s knowledge of procedures and other aspects of the job and the ability to interact with customers is most effective. Employers said the least advantageous impact on productivity is how much longer they expect older workers to be working.

A MATTER OF COST

Even if employers see older workers as equally or more productive than younger workers, more than 40% of those surveyed said they see older workers as more expensive than younger employees, which is twice as many as those that said they cost less.

The split on cost between white collar and rank-and-file workers are as follows:

White Collar Workers

  • 37% of companies with less than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more costly than their younger counterparts; 46% said equally as costly; 17% said less costly.
  • 45% of companies with more than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more costly than their younger counterparts; 33% said equally as costly; 22% said less costly.

Rank-and-File Workers

  • 40% of companies with less than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more costly than their younger counterparts; 41% said equally as costly; 18% said less costly.
  • 46% of companies with more than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more costly than their younger counterparts; 34% said equally as costly; 20% said less costly.

Large employers (those with more than 1,000 employees) were more likely to perceive older workers – both white collar and rank-and-file – as more costly, with 46% saying the same about white collar workers, compared with 38% of mid-sized employers and 36% of small employers. For rank-and-file employees, 51% of large employers saw them as more expensive, compared to 40% of mid-sized employers and 39% of small employers.

ATTRACTIVE OR NOT?

The Boston College survey found that two-thirds of employers surveyed said an older employee or prospect is neither more nor less attractive than a younger worker, which was true with both white collar and rank-and-file employees.

However, almost one in four employers said older managers or professionals are more attractive than someone younger, and very few said they were less attractive. The survey found that the greatest difference in the attractiveness of older workers came in rank-and-file workers – the younger workforce, small employers and employers in goods producing industries were all less attracted to older rank-and-file workers.

White Collar Workers

  • 28% of companies with less than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those workers are more attractive than their younger counterparts; 65% said equally as attractive; 7% said less attractive.
  • 21% of companies with more than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those are more attractive than their younger counterparts; 72% said equally as attractive; 7% said less attractive.

Rank-and-File Workers

  • 11% of companies with less than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those are more attractive than their younger counterparts; 68% said equally as attractive; 21% said less attractive.
  • 17% of companies with more than 15% of workers aged 55 and older said those are more attractive than their younger counterparts; 66% said equally as attractive; 17% said less attractive.

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