How to keep older workers safe and productive on the job

It seems baby boomers just aren’t ready to trade in their time cards for bingo cards.

According to a recent Gallup poll, the age at which Americans anticipate retiring has increased from 60 in 1995 to 67 in recent years, and fewer adults are considering an early retirement. According to the Society for Human Resources, 20 percent of the workforce will be age 55 or older by 2020.

For some, it’s a matter of choice–they like what they do, they like the sense of purpose and productivity, and they’re not ready to give it up. Others are less fortunate. “Many got hit hard by the recession, and need to make up losses in their retirement savings before they can leave the workforce,” says Joyce Maroney, executive director of the Workforce Institute at Kronos.

Employers, for the most part, welcome the decision. Older workers offer experience and skills that can’t be replaced by younger workers. In fact, in some instances, older workers are delaying their retirement at the request their employers. “I have a colleague who kept trying to retire but they said, ‘We could really use you. Can you hang on for another year?’” says Seth Serxner, chief health officer, OptumHealth. “I’ve heard several stories where people have tried to retire and failed.”

Related: Delaying retirement can have remarkable benefits

But as much as some employers and employees may want to continue this symbiotic relationship, there eventually comes a point where it doesn’t work as well as it used to. The effects of aging are inevitable, and many older workers eventually need some accommodations to continue working. “Many of the common health conditions that begin to appear in middle age are going to be that much more prevalent in older workers – hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes,” Maroney says. “Issues like arthritis, heart disease, and osteoporosis become more common as people age, as well as the risk of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease.”

While aging increases the likelihood of such issues, there’s no magic age at which health becomes an issue for worker safety. “There are plenty of older workers who are as sharp or sharper than their younger cohorts,” Serxner says. “There are also younger employees who are frankly less fit than their older cohorts.”

Still, the increasing population of working older adults presents a perfect opportunity for companies to look at the policies and programs in place to accommodate workers in a variety of life situations.

Recognizing the signs

Noticing a change in performance for a long-time employee may be relatively easy, but identifying the cause is often less so. “You’ll see an employee who’s been on the job 20 years and you start seeing a decline in their performance,” says Jeffery Smith, practice consultant for The Standard’s Workplace Possibilities program. “The natural reaction is that they’re not performing at that level because of other issues, where the simple truth might be that there’s something changing with their body. Maybe they can’t see the screen as well, or they’re having concentration or anxiety related issue.”

Whatever the situation, many individuals are reluctant to talk about issues they may be having, particularly with a boss or coworker. Addressing potential concerns is a sensitive issue and needs to be done in a sensitive manner; an HR team is often best equipped to start that conversation. “ I always warn employers when we talk about any type of limitation: don’t react immediately,” Smith says. “Sit down and make sure you understand the limits, what the options are, what’s going to allow the employee to be safe and productive.

“I never recommend the manager goes and addresses these,” he adds. “I recommend they get involved with the HR department. There are things to protect older workers from discrimination.”

The Age Discrimination in Employment Act and even the Americans with Disabilities Act provide older employees with certain rights. “ADA is not actually age-related, but it is there to provide accommodation for people with disabilities, which often goes hand in hand with increased age,” Smith says.

HR professionals have the skills and knowledge to navigate any potential legal issues while having a productive conversation with an individual. “In those conversations, the employee may reveal they know there is an underlying medical issue,” Maroney says. “In some cases, there may be accommodations that can be made to help the employee stay on the job. In other cases, the employee’s loss of function may make termination necessary at some point. Either way, it will always be the right thing to do to treat workers with empathy and respect throughout the process.”

Because these situation are becoming more common, employers and their HR teams would be wise to look at their existing policies processes for accommodating workers with health issues before an issue arises. Says Serxner, “When people are not fit for duty, regardless of age, there needs to be a clear HR policy and the ability to provide feedback to those individuals to figure out how to make the workplace fit best for them.”

There are plenty of resources to help guide these policies and conversations. The Job Accommodation Network is a great place to start, says Smith. “They have a great section on older workers, talking about accommodations and benefits. It’s filled with tips that employers should be aware of.”

Another great source? Your disability carrier. They are well-versed in providing accommodations for workers with disabilities, and many of those accommodations can just as easily benefit an older worker. “I tell employers, ‘Never forget, there’s so many accommodations you can make to keep the individual productive, engaged, and on the job,” Smith says. “It’s important to provide the training to managers and supervisors so when they see and recognize these issues, they can come to HR.”

Modifying the environment

So what can an employer do to accommodate an older worker? The physical work environment is a good place to start. “Where I see the most issues are vision and hearing,” says Smith. In today’s world, such limitations are easy to overcome, from low-tech mounted magnifying glasses to apps that will take a picture of a document and read the text back to you.

“For hearing, apps are the biggest thing out there,” Smith says. “I had a gentleman having hearing related issues and I let him know about the apps: it’s as simple as pointing your phone, adjusting left and right for ear buds and amplifying sound. I called back to ask him if he was using it and he said it was working great and he didn’t feel self-conscious because so many people have earbuds in these days anyway.”

Related: 6 ways to keep older workers on the job longer

Other changes to the building itself may offer minimal disruption but offer a major impact, such as moving an employee’s workspace away from a source of noise and disruption, or maybe closer to the restrooms. Employers may also consider adding reserved parking spaces closer to the entrance for their older employees.

A thoughtful evaluation of the office environment and layout sparked by the needs of one can be beneficial to the whole. “It’s like the buttons that you hit on the door to make it open automatically,” Serxner says. “They were designed for people who are disabled, but other people use them too. Physical changes like this help everybody.”

It’s also something Serxner is seeing become more common. “We do a Wellness in the Workplace survey every year, and one of the questions we ask is, ‘Have you been making any physical changes in the environment?’” he says. “We’ve been seeing a significant increase. Whether well-lit staircases, walking paths or other things like that, we had 56 percent of employers making physical changes in 2017.”

Changes to the employee’s work day can also be beneficial. Flexible hours might just be the best accommodation for older workers, says Maroney. Not only does a flexible schedule accommodate issues with reduced concentration and energy, it can help ease the transition from full-time work to retirement. “People look forward to retirement as a time of life to spend more time with family, community service, hobbies, and travel,” she says. “Older workers may not be ready to retire altogether, but may wish to downshift to a part time schedule. This can be a win for both parties.”

Even with an accommodation,some parts of the job may simply no longer be feasible for a worker. But that doesn’t mean it’s time to get rid of the employee completely. Perhaps there’s another position in the company that would better match theirs skill set. Or, consider evaluating the duties of the position and see which can be eliminated or shifted to another position. “Organizations should be looking at the skills and knowledge their older workers bring to the table and mapping that against their current and future talent needs,” Maroney says. “They may find that ‘accommodating’ their older workers is a necessity, not a concession.”

Focus on health and wellness

Aging employees provide a variety of benefits to their employer, but they also have the potential to cost more when it comes to things like health benefits. But the same strategies and initiatives employers are using to keep their entire health care spend in check apply to all employees, regardless of age.

“Any employers who are providing health benefits to their employees are motivated to keep those costs down by finding ways to get their workers to monitor and manage their physical well-being,” Maroney says. “Lots of organizations are providing resources to help their employees with both physical and financial health. These aren’t benefits that are limited to older workers, but they can be especially relevant for them.”

“We talk a lot about multi-generational workforces,” Serxner adds. “A big focus has been on the millennials, of course, but as we promote programs and services, the big key is engagement–trying to have relevant promotions and communications for a person’s life stage.”

There are some benefits that can be particularly valuable for older workers, such as tools to help navigate the health care system, employee assistance plans and behavioral health programs.

“We know that 31 percent of employers now have a musculoskeletal of program, compared to 8 percent in 2016,” Serxner adds. “We’re seeing more programs around centers of excellence, high quality, and best cost–the best place to go for knee replacement or back surgery. They support people of all ages, but are obviously relevant to people who are older and may have health conditions.”

Similarly, wellness programs can offer benefits to employees of all ages. Physical wellness is an important factor for older adults who want to continue working, as well as younger workers who want the option to keep working later in life. “As we blend with the wellness focus, there’s this focus on staying fit and healthy so you can age well,” Serxner says. “That’s what motivates many people today: maintain your health so you can continue to work by choice.”