In the current situation where many organizations are struggling with staff shortages, corona causes more absenteeism and an aging society, it is necessary to think how to keep your employee healthy at work as long as possible. Many organizations therefore have a senior citizen policy where employees have the option of working half an hour less per day, for example, or retiring early without sacrificing much themselves. However, with these types of measures, organizations are often behind the times and do not achieve the desired effect of healthy and sustainable employees.
Start early
Most organizations have a policy that employees can claim when they are already close to their retirement date. However, by then it is often too late and you see that employees in the last ten working years are frequently and long-term absenteeism because they can no longer physically and/or mentally cope with the work. However, by then they are already at an age where retraining or finding another employer is no longer possible or useful. An effective elderly policy therefore starts with "young" employees.
Foundation for conversation
sustainable employability is a term widely used in the absence world, and something many organizations strive to achieve. But sustainable employability requires time, energy and good conversations with your employees at a time when there is not yet a cloud in the sky. So this needs to be actively made space within your organization, and be a topic of conversation throughout someone's career, not just when the end is in sight.
By conducting sustainable employability interviews at an early stage, the organization creates a culture in which employees can take responsibility for their own sustainable employability. By looking to the future together and discussing possibilities, people can take control of their career choices for a healthy future. And of course it is easy to say that you should start a conversation with your employees about the future and whether they still see themselves doing their job in 10 years, but it is important that a good foundation is laid before such a conversation can take place. A foundation of trust between employer and employee is crucial in an honest conversation about employability. If this trust is lacking, an employee will never allow himself to be vulnerable and express doubts about his employability for the coming years.
