Page 127 - increasing-the-value-of-age-guidance-in-employers-age-management-strategies

Increasing the value of age: guidance in employers’ age management strategies

Key message 1: establish frameworks for lifelong career development
Despite the principles laid down by the 2008 Council resolution, (Council of the
European Union, 2008b) guidance provision across the lifespan is still
fragmented, both in terms of policies and stakeholder engagement. The
establishment of an overarching framework could stimulate the development of a
coherent system assuring access, quality, and cooperation, and encourage
career development. The basis for such a framework should be a homogeneous
definition of age management, guidance and the role of the different actors. All
policy priorities are interconnected, nevertheless, in enterprise contexts;
prioritising individual access to guidance in the workplace is fundamental.
Motivating older workers to have an active attitude to career development:
guaranteeing their fair and ethical treatment is also fundamental. Stimulating
packages should be set up for starting up guidance activities at company level:
financial incentives; good practices, guidelines; and awareness-raising activities,
communicating the effects of guidance in the workplace.

Key message 2: better coordination of guidance activities must be achieved
in the cooperation with social partners
Guidance should be better integrated in active age management strategies at
both national and sector level. This policy issue is closely related to the adoption
of a lifelong understanding of career development as a basis for the definition of
guidance systems. The current fragmentary organisation of most guidance
systems, based on institutional sector definition tends, to ignore continuous
career development for individuals. Guidance provision across an individual
learning and work context can be improved if individual experiences, skills and
needs are considered and assessed. This requires coordination between
stakeholders, which can be formalised in common registry tools such as
portfolios, the development of common career management skills frameworks,
sharing client databases (within ethical principles) and practical day-to-day
cooperation in the handling of individual cases. Public employment services and
education providers should streamline their guidance provision for employed
older workers, developing outreach strategies, to inform employers and
employees about their services and to provide guidance in a flexible manner (at
the time, location, and in the form that comply with the needs of the worker). All of
organisations involved (employers, unions, guidance providers, employment
services, etc.) must work towards development of career management skills,
access to guidance and quality of guidance.

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