Organisation-level policy towards older workers in Poland

Perek-Białas J, Turek K. Organisation-level policy towards older workers in Poland

This article presents the results of studies on organisation-level strategies towards older workers in Poland. The analyses were based on a national and representative sample survey of 1,037 companies (public and private sectors) – the first of its kind in Poland. The question of the survey was: How do Polish employers deal with an ageing workforce and how can management tap into their potential through various measures? The analyses revealed three different strategies: (i) improvement of productivity – trying to improve the skills and competencies of older workers, increase their effective use of and adjustment to the workplace, plan individual career moves and avoid work burn-out; (ii) the pushing out of older workers – attempting to rid the workplace of older workers as quickly as possible; (iii) accommodation and reduction of labour costs – slowly preparing senior workers for retirement and creating conditions that would meet their actual needs.