Training: stereotypes about older workers or good practice against stereotypes?
Effective age management should not be reserved for workers on boards of directors,
or in powerful positions, or employed in specific industries. Age should be universally
viewed as a positive value and as synonymous with knowledge and competences,
which older workers can share, to the benefit of the entire company and in order to
avoid a knowledge gap when they retire.
Despite the prevalence of stereotypes with regard to the poor training potential of
older workers and the fact that they are discriminated against in terms of access to
training programmes, education and training initiatives designed to enhance the
professional skills and employability of senior workers are the most commonly
implemented age management practices strategies. Lifelong learning is in fact the key
strategy required to promote the employment of seniors, given the ample evidence that
higher levels of education lead to lower unemployment rates for older workers.