Recruiting and Retaining Older Workers is a Must for U.S. Businesses. Here are Tools Employers Can Use.

Recruiting and Retaining Older Workers is a Must for U.S. Businesses. Here are Tools Employers Can Use.

AARP

July 2024

Shifting demographics in the U.S. workforce indicate that businesses are probably going to need to recruit, train, and retain older workers to ensure their companies remain competitive. However, workplace surveys indicate that most firms are currently not prepared to find and welcome workers who are 50 years of age or older.

Fortunately, a broad array of evidence-based hiring and talent development strategies are at the ready for U.S. employers. These strategies draw from a recent and comprehensive review of employer practices and their influence on economic security and mobility for U.S. workers who experience structural disadvantages and exclusion from opportunity in the labor market.

Three key connected takeaways for employers to consider as they plan for ways to leverage this segment of the workforce are as follows:

• Engage directly with older employees in developing their digital skills.

• Seek out the social networks in which older workers operate to find the best recruiting matches.

• Lean into current or former employees and their online connections to identify these social networks.