3 OTHER MEASURES TO HELP OLDER
PEOPLE OVERCOME THE BARRIERS TO EMPLOYMENT
19. 18. Older people and others at a disadvantage
in the labour market tend on average to have relatively low levels
of qualifications and skills. Improving basic and vocational skills
can therefore help to improve their employability. Training and
education participation rates for the over 50s remain lower than
those of younger age groups, despite an increase in recent years.
The law requires the Department for Education and Skills to provide
for people under 19 in a way that is not required for older people.[30]
Local Learning and Skills Councils are required to address inequality
in education and training by setting targets for under-represented
or under-achieving groups in their Equality and Diversity Impact
Measures. However, although the local Councils offer a range of
programmes relevant to improving the employability of older people,
only seven of the 47 Councils had specifically addressed issues
relating to older learners.[31]
The Department for Education and Skills is currently examining
how each of the Councils is helping older workers and learners
in the programmes they provide, with a view to identifying best
practice that can be disseminated. It plans to finalise this work
early in 2005.[32]
20. 19. The statutory duties of Regional Development
Agencies include promoting employment and enhancing the development
and application of skills relevant to employment. They are well
placed to assist in reducing regional and local variations in
employment rates, but to date the extent to which they have focused
on older workers has been mixed. It is up to Agencies and their
regional partners to decide how far older age employment is a
priority. Only East Midlands has so far set targets in this area,
although some regions have been taken action in response to the
state of their labour market.[33]
The new Tasking Framework for Regional Development Agencies -
to come into effect in April 2005 - requires them to demonstrate
progress over the three years to Spring 2008 in increasing the
employment rate amongst disadvantaged groups, including people
aged 50 and over. A number of initiatives are under way in several
areas.[34]
21. 20. A relatively high proportion of over
50s (11%) are in self-employment and for those made redundant
or who have retired early self-employment can be an attractive
option. The Department of Trade and Industry's Small Business
Service provides support services for business start-up, self-employment
and small and medium-sized business growth. And the Government's
Phoenix Fund is currently supporting The PRIME Initiative Ltd,
a national organisation encouraging those over 50 to consider
self-employment or starting a business. In its first three years,
it has helped more than 7,000 people over 50 interested in working
for themselves, although it does not appear to be very widely
known. Phoenix Fund support for this initiative runs until March
2006.[35]
22. 21. Age discrimination in the workplace
and negative perceptions about older workers are significant barriers
to employment of older people, though many of these perceptions
are not supported by evidence.[36]
The Government has tried to increase awareness and influence attitudes
in this area through its Age Positive campaign (established in
1999) and website (www.agepositive.gov.uk),
and by introducing a non-statutory Code of Practice on Age Diversity
in Employment that set standards for "non-ageist" approaches
to recruitment, training and development, promotion, redundancy
and retirement. However, when asked, many employers were not aware
of the Code and the Department said it had found it difficult
to communicate with the large number of small and medium sized
enterprises.[37]
Although some of the publicity around this initiative appears
to have been rather low key, the Department has been working with
the National Employer Panel and employers to argue the case for
employing older workers. It considers that efforts to change the
views of employers has led, for example, to a decline in the proportion
of employers using age as a criterion in recruitment.[38]
23. 22. The Government is committed to introducing
legislation to combat age discrimination in employment and vocational
training by the end of 2006. Lead responsibility lies with the
Department of Trade and Industry. Following two public consultation
exercises, draft regulations for further consultation were due
to be published in Spring 2004. The complex issues, and differing
views on whether a mandatory retirement age should be allowed,
have delayed the timetable.[39]
Having consulted widely, the Government has now decided that the
legislation will provide for a national default retirement age
of 65 and a right for employees to request working beyond the
set retirement age. Consultation on the draft regulation will
now take place in summer 2005.[40]
24. 23. Alongside age discrimination legislation,
the Government has proposed a range of other measures to promote
flexible retirement and help extend working life. These have different
implementation dates and include: in Spring 2005 introducing more
generous increases for deferring take up of state pensions; by
April 2006 allowing people to continue working for their employer
while drawing an occupational pension; by 2010 raising the earliest
age from which an occupational pension may be taken from 50 to
55; and by the end of 2006 raising the normal pension age in public
service pension schemes from 60 to 65 for new entrants.[41]
The Department are pursuing these policies as part of their attempt
to change attitudes about how long people expect to work as the
average lifespan extends.[42]
30 C&AG's Report, para 2.29; Qq 48, 86-87 Back
31
C&AG's Report, para 2.33 Back
32
Qq 57-59 Back
33
C&AG's Report, para 2.36-2.39; Q 202 Back
34
Ev 18; Qq 202-203 Back
35
Qq 64-65, 68, 108 Back
36
C&AG's Report, Figure 17; Q 47 Back
37
Qq 141-156; C&AG's Report, para 2.43-2.45 Back
38
Qq 136, 146-158 Back
39
C&AG's Report, para 2.46-2.47; Qq 166-167 Back
40
HC Deb 14 December 2004, Vol 428, cc 128-130 WS Back
41
C&AG's Report, paras 2.48-2.51; Qq 164-165 Back
42
Q 115 Back
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