Working Lives Research Institute

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Last updated: 15/01/09

What is good practice?

Good practice on age and employment has been defined as a combination of:

• Specific measures to overcome or minimise age barriers
• General employment or human resource (HR) policies which provide a work enviroment in which individuals are able to achieve their potential without being disadvantaged by their age.
  

The six universal dimensions of HR management in the cycle of employment underpin the Code of Good Practice:

1. Job recruitment
2. Learning, training and development and promotion
3. Promotion and internal job changes
4. Flexible working practices and modernisation of work.
5. Workplace design and health promotion.
6. Employment exit and the transition to retirement.
   

Some exemples of good practice can be found in organisations that nonetheless have various other age barriers. The comprehensive elimination of ages barriers requires a broad "age management" strategy, involving a change in attitudes within organisations, which is included in the Code as a seventh HR management category. The final aim is to eliminate the impact of ageing on employment and to achieve a position of age neutrality.

So far evidence of good practice has been demonstrated mainly in large organisations and there is clearly considerable scope for sharing that experience with smaller ones.

Source: "Ageing in employment. A propolsal for a European Code of Good Practice". Eurolink Age 2000