{"id":838,"date":"2026-05-20T14:55:25","date_gmt":"2026-05-20T12:55:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.activis.swiss\/?p=838"},"modified":"2026-05-20T14:56:48","modified_gmt":"2026-05-20T12:56:48","slug":"older-workers-beyond-the-stereotypes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.activis.swiss\/en\/older-workers-beyond-the-stereotypes\/","title":{"rendered":"Older workers: beyond the stereotypes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Should we continue to deprive ourselves of the skills of the over-55s with their proven experience amidst escalating skilled labour shortages? An attempt to find answers through an analysis of various players in the French-speaking Swiss economy, touching on a subject that has become a talking point for society as a whole.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

With Switzerland set to lose some 430,000 workers between now and 2040, companies are struggling to recruit the over-55s. This contradiction was highlighted during the round table at the launch of the joint white paper Seniors in the workplace: more essential than ever<\/em> published by \u00c9ditions Favre. The work includes an analysis of the situation by Activis, the Interiman Group company specialising in short-term and permanent assignments for older workers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Four figures from business, HR and journalism shared their insights at the launch event. They were journalist and columnist Martina Chyba, J\u00e9r\u00f4me Cosandey, head of the Labour Directorate at the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, Marco Taddei, head of the Swiss Employers\u2019 Association for French-speaking Switzerland, and Costantino Serafini, head of the AvantAge Switzerland programme and under whose direction the white paper was produced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A projected shortfall and enduring prejudice<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

The trend is clear: while Gen X is getting ready to retire, hot on the heels of the baby boomers, young people are few and far between in the workforce. \u201cWe\u2019ll need to pull out all the stops\u201d, warns J\u00e9r\u00f4me Cosandey, noting that the increased participation of women, the inclusion of people with disabilities, automation and, of course, older workers, are just some of the measures required to address the projected labour shortfall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nevertheless, a survey presented in the white paper shows that one in five companies in French-speaking Switzerland do not employ anyone over the age of 55. But why? Martina Chyba believes that this is mainly due to outdated representations. \u201cWe\u2019re made to understand from the age of 45 that we\u2019re no longer digital natives.<\/em>\u201d Yet the companies surveyed actually recognise that older employees aren\u2019t any less creative or productive. And therein lies the paradox.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The burden of stereotypes and not of costs<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Unsurprisingly, the cost of experienced employees regularly comes up in discussions, especially because of the higher LPP (2nd pillar) pension contributions. Marco Taddei puts the figures into perspective, however. The difference represents \u201ca few dozen francs a month\u201d which is no excuse for rejecting job applications. This is particularly the case as older employees often stay at companies for longer. This is a key advantage when it comes to recouping the costs of initial or ongoing training. \u201cThere is a better return on investment\u201d, points out J\u00e9r\u00f4me Cosandey, who also notes that younger workers often switch employers more quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although the current economic situation is taking its toll on certain industries, the age pyramid won\u2019t change. In Costantino Serafini\u2019s view, getting rid of older staff in a tense environment would be a strategic error. \u201cThe economy is cyclical, while demographics are not\u201d, as he points out.  That\u2019s why he is very much in favour of training measures during periods of short-term unemployment, as a way of maintaining employability for experienced staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marco Taddei believes that having better protections against lay-offs, which is often championed by the unions, would be counter-productive. \u201cEmployers would stop taking the risk of recruiting if they couldn\u2019t get rid of people easily.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adapting jobs, preventing exits<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

One of the blind spots highlighted by Martina Chyba covers the daily lives of older workers. \u201cAt 60 we have to produce just as we did when we were 30\u201d, she laments. It is a situation that fails to take into account physical realities such as fatigue, invisible disabilities (a hearing impairment in Chyba\u2019s case) and mental load. These are all good reasons for reorganising labour conditions to make people want to continue working past the age of retirement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To achieve this, there seems to be consensus around one tool: careers guidance from 58 onwards. The reality, however, is that it is still not widely available, even though it would enable HR departments to address issues such as health, aspirations, training needs and potential adaptations. All of these things would support older employees in the latter stages of their working lives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the same spirit, and rather than creating measures aimed solely at older workers, J\u00e9r\u00f4me Cosandey invites us to consider implementing tools that would benefit the entire workforce. These could include offering flexible working hours or training courses tailored to the age and aspirations of each individual. \u201cPositive discrimination for some can quickly become negative discrimination for others\u201d, as he reminds us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Overcoming an outdated contradiction<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Martina Chyba, whose work is consistently well received, warns of another risk: internal segregation. \u201cLet\u2019s avoid age ghettos\u201d, she says. One way for older staff to both learn and to transfer their skills would be to have the generations intermingle, with the introduction of hybrid teams, reverse mentoring or cross-internships. She reminds us that when programmes had to continue amidst the unprecedented circumstances of the Covid pandemic, older staff with their resilience set an example to younger colleagues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last but not least, all of those involved agree on one key point. Older workers are worth their weight in \u201cgrey gold\u201d, thanks to the reliability, loyalty, expertise and interpersonal skills that we typically associate with them. The challenge is therefore to align HR practices, public policies and attitudes so that this invaluable resource \u2013 one that is \u201cmore essential than ever\u201d, as the white paper\u2019s title puts it \u2013 is fully utilised. As one speaker summed up: \u201cWe criticise older workers for having too much experience and younger ones for not having enough of it. It\u2019s time we got beyond this contradiction.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Should we continue to deprive ourselves of the skills of the over-55s with their proven experience amidst escalating skilled labour shortages? An attempt to find answers through an analysis of various players in the French-speaking Swiss economy, touching on a subject that has become a talking point for society as a whole. With Switzerland set […]<\/p>\n

Read More… from Older workers: beyond the stereotypes<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":835,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog-en"],"yoast_head":"\nOlder workers: beyond the stereotypes - activis<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Should we continue to deprive ourselves of the skills of the over-55s with their proven experience amidst escalating skilled labour shortages? 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