According to Manpower Minister Tan See Leng, the employment of workers aged 65 and above increased from 27.6% in 2019  to 28.5 % in 2020, while the employment rate of those between the age of  55 to 64 was stable at over 67%, comparable to the top 3 OECD countries.

With government schemes to support senior workers and encourage firms to engage mature employees such as the Senior Employment Credit program, Senior Worker Early Adopter Grant as well as Part-Time Re-employment Grant, seniors were able to rejoin the workforce in various capacities.

There is thus a need to encourage age diversification in our workplace today. Here’s how companies can build an inclusive and accommodating work environment:

Incorporating opportunities for different age groups to work together
Human Resource (HR) plays a key role in building a workplace for cross-generation collaboration. Opportunities must be created for the different generations to collaborate on different projects and interact while respecting differences. Team-bonding activities and training programs could be put in place to encourage more teamwork and mentoring.

Managers should set clear expectations and fair standards
Managers should be mindful of their own biases or stereotypes when they are managing employees from different generations, especially in a hybrid work arrangement. There should be a good balance between general inclinations and taking into account individual differences. As hybrid work arrangements differ from company to company, managers need to be aware of proximity bias as well. That is, there are higher opportunities for promotion if one is being seen by the superiors to be working in the office.

According to the ADP Research Institute’s People at Work 2021: A Global Workforce View study, only 26 percent of Generation Z workers want a complete return to the office, signaling a change of a 9 to 6 traditional workday. What this suggests is that managers should learn how to set clear expectations and help their employees to work better and be more efficient regardless of where they are working from. Instead of compelling all workers to return to the workplace, managers should think about how to encourage their staff to return to the office willingly. There is also a need to recognise the pivotal role of technology in allowing all employees to work remotely in a productive and efficient manner if they wish to do so.

Differentiated Skills Training 
Companies also need to see that employees need different types of training at different stages of their lives. Managers should also learn and appreciate the different motivating factors and preferences when it comes to training needs.

For senior staff with years of work experience, more targeted training on the shifts in technologies in the business environment would be appropriate. In contrast, for younger workers who may be technologically savvy, more mentoring and training on how they can work together in a diverse workplace may be required.
Challenges Ahead for Employers
Firms and their HR professionals need to work together to determine the most suitable work arrangements for their employees such that collaboration and productivity could be facilitated. Next, companies should also consider how to motivate and engage their employees in face of a disruptive force like the current pandemic.

Do you think there is a need to rethink how employees are being managed in a diverse workforce? What are some of the age-inclusive practices that worked for your organisation?