The evergreen generation
Older workers are keen to carry on, and they’re needed, writes Helen King.
New Zealand will become more dependent on its ageing workforce as more and more of us hold off on retirement.
In the next 20 years, over-65s are expected to make up at least 12 per cent of the workforce and Stephanie Claire, chief executive of Age Concern, believes it’s time the older generation were viewed as a valuable asset in the workplace.
‘‘They contribute to the economic development of the country by working, purchasing, and paying taxes.’’
Claire advocates for people to stay longer in employment if that’s what they want. ‘‘There are three reasons older people stay in employment: contribution, money and connection.’’
Already, traditional ideas of retirement are changing as many people choose to stay in the workforce for longer.
‘‘People ask me all the time what my exit plan is and I tell them there isn’t one,’’ says Margi Robertson, lead designer for fashion brand Nom*D, who has been in fashion since 1975.
‘‘I don’t know what else I’d do, to be honest. I’m not really a gardener or into golf.’’ She’ll be turning 65 next year. ‘‘I don’t have a Gold Card yet but it’s looming.’’
Robertson doesn’t see age as a restriction in an industry that often celebrates youth.
‘‘I love what I do. It’s an amazing feeling when you’ve been around for a while and lived through so many changes.’’
Engineer Clyde Chiplin laughs when asked if it’s hard working when older. Chiplin, in his late 70s, has been employed since he was 15 and still works from his Papatoetoe garage.
‘‘You’ve got to be active, you’ve got to keep your mind occupied otherwise you’d just sit in your chair and fade away,’’ he said.
‘‘I see people with a lot of experience getting made redundant at 45 or 50 and they can’t get another job. Some of them would have worked their way from a factory worker to manager but nowadays you need dots after your name.’’
Auckland clinical psychologist Malcolm Falconer agrees his experience is one of his strengths. At 66 he’s been in the sector for more than two decades.
‘‘I think in my field age brings wisdom which isn’t usually associated with youth.’’ Work is also stimulating. ‘‘I like to keep interested. I would be bored if I wasn’t working and I still enjoy doing what I do. In my line of work I get to see people get positive outcomes so there’s a sense of making a difference.’’
In the Beehive, politicians often discover their talents – and connections – are still in demand when they quit politics.
At 76, Don Brash has no intention of retiring. Brash is the chairman of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (New Zealand), and still tends to the family kiwifruit orchard.
‘‘I think it would be an awful situation if you no longer had any mental stimulus. I’ve been unbelievably lucky, I was in Parliament at 65 as leader of the National Party.’’
Labour health spokeswoman Annette King is eyeing her next career move at 69 as she nears the end of a 30-year parliamentary career.
‘‘We shouldn’t write people off just because they’re in their 60s.’’
She points out her former colleague, Helen Clark, who retires after eight years as director of the United Nations Development Programme on Tuesday, still has a huge amount to contribute at 67.
‘‘If you think about it Helen Clark was the prime minister and then the head of a huge organisation. Why would you waste that experience by retiring?’’ Age is perception, King says. ‘‘People need to realise people in their 60s and 70s don’t consider themselves as old.’’