It is critical that all levels of government, business and the community work together to help encourage older workers so that Australia can sustain its high levels of economic growth into the future.
For our part I will be asking the Prime Minister's Community Business Partnership to suggest practical ways the Government could encourage the private sector to employ more mature workers.
We are also looking at other ways to ensure that this wealth of talent is not lost. These include: information campaigns aimed at both employers and employees to help improve attitudes about mature age employment; and encouraging people to consider part-time and contract work for the time they wish to remain in the workforce beyond current retirement ages.
Labour markets will need to be sufficiently flexible to suit the needs of older workers. A regulated labour market diminishes the capacity of mature age personnel to choose their working hours, retirement age and the specific rewards they want to receive.
Changing our culture of early retirement will largely require improving community understanding of the immense value of older workers and the importance of increasing labour force participation.
Research shows that mature age workers have many qualities valuable to business, including experience, loyalty, corporate knowledge, commitment, strong work ethic, reliability and low absenteeism.
For these reasons, business have a vital role to play in encouraging more older workers.
I acknowledge businesses who are setting an example for others by recruiting more mature employees, utilising older workers as mentors and adopting a more flexible working environment. Such firms are already experiencing the benefits gained from investing in older employees.
I believe both governments and the private sector have a role to play in lifting the workforce participation rate of older Australians.
Small, well-targeted steps taken now will help ensure that we can avoid more drastic steps in twenty, thirty, or forty years'; time.