6533b85afe1ef96bd12b9e81

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Introduction: Why to Study Ageing in Organisations?

subject

description

Questions related to ageing are shared widely in and between organizations. People are living longer and working longer than they used to earlier (Levinson 1978). The percentage of people over 60 years of age is growing rapidly worldwide, with one report estimating that by mid-century the number of people over 60 will triple to nearly two billion people. This tendency is evident especially in Europe and North America, which countries face the retiring of the baby-boom generation (Aaltio et al., International Journal of Work Innovation, 1(4), 323–329, 2016). The growing phenomenon of ageing has had and will have a major impact on the economy, and on social and work life (Davoudi et al., Futures, 42(8), 794–803, 2010). Age is widely used to judge workplace tenure and suitability for certain types of work. For example, there are age restrictions on pilots and surgeons in a number of countries (Bridges et al., Absent aviators: Gender issues in aviation. London: Ashgate, 2014). Historically, a number of countries have had retirement ages in place but recent debates have led to the ending or extension of the age at which individuals are required to stop full-time work. For instance, in Canada, the retirement age was 65 years of age until recently when the practice was legally ended in most jurisdictions.