“The companies who succeed will be those who take advantage of what older workers can bring to the table, in a way that is both innovative and inclusive.”
A recent KPMG survey* has revealed that a significant proportion of the workforce believe that older workers should make way for younger workers. However, while there may be some tension between different generations in the workplace, and employers should be aware of this, there is no need for inter-generational warfare, according to a KPMG spokesperson.
Nearly half of respondents to the survey (46%) thought that older members of staff should retire so that younger colleagues had genuine opportunities to progress their careers. A similar portion of respondents felt that the prolonged presence of baby boomers and generation Xers in the workforce would drain productivity.
In addition, only 20% of respondents believe that employees generally will want to retain older workers in order to learn from their experience.
“As people remain in the workplace for longer, older workers will inevitably constitute a larger proportion of the workforce. Although this may breed the pernicious perception that the younger generation will lose out, this does not have to be the case,” Rober Bolton, of KPMG, said.
“An older workforce brings a wealth of experience and Baby Boomers can potentially adopt the invaluable role of coach or mentor to those entering the workplace. The companies who succeed will be those who take advantage of what older workers can bring to the table, in a way that is both innovative and inclusive,” he added.
*The KPMG survey attracted 1,500 respondents from five generations and was conducted by OnePoll.
