Older Worker Issues

Older workers constitute a growing segment of the workforce and must contend with a variety of distinctive concerns as they navigate their careers. These include physical, cognitive, and emotional changes that accompany the aging process; unique sources of work stress; age discrimination in employment opportunities; late-career and skill maintenance concerns; and decisions about when and how to retire from active employment. Psychologists can use information about challenges that confront older workers to develop recruitment and retention strategies and work designs that allow older workers to maintain their performance effectiveness and to see work as a satisfying and rewarding experience.