Development and Validation of a Workplace Age-Friendliness Measure

A Quick "Environment Check" for All Ages: Validating the New Age-Inclusive Work Environments Instrument

Background and Objectives

The global aging workforce necessitates new approaches in designing work environments to cater to the needs of increasingly age-diverse work groups. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has in reaction outlined that organizations need to provide age-inclusive work environments that support the needs of their multigenerational workforce, to ensure their sustainability and profitability. To capture the age inclusiveness of the work environment, the present study proposes and validates an age-inclusive "environment check" for organizations referred to as the Age-Inclusive Work Environment Instrument (AIWEI), which covers discrimination, inclusion, and development opportunities.

Research Design and Methods

We validate the 9-item AIWEI using cross-sectional and multilevel data from 2,892 Swedish workers across 101 workplaces who completed an online survey, using confirmatory factor analyses across young, middle-age, and older workers. Using a nomological approach, we also evaluate the concurrent validity of the AIWEI with a 2-1-1 path analysis.

Results

The factor analyses supported a 3-factor model comprising of inclusion, discrimination, and development opportunities, across 3 age groups (i.e., young, middle-age, and older workers). These 3 factors had high Intraclass Coefficient (ICC) scores showing consistency in responding in the workplace. In accordance with the nomological approach, the factors of the AIWEI were linked with Psychosocial Safety Climate, burnout, and engagement, demonstrating concurrent validity for the AIWEI.

Discussion and Implications

This new "environment check" provides a way to capture age-inclusive work environments for both younger and older workers, in an age-diverse workforce. In the validation process, age-inclusive work environments were found to exist as a group phenomenon, through shared perceptions within an organization, as well as an individual phenomenon, as experiences specific to an individual. This is important for the development and implementation of policies and strategies designed to benefit workers and organizations.

Technology Boom(ers): How US Multinational Technology Companies Are Preparing for an Ageing Workforce

This study addresses a lack of knowledge of how US multinational organizations are preparing for an ageing workforce. The study took the form of a qualitative multiple-case study, comprising in depth semi-structured interviews of senior managers in target companies selected through purposive sampling. The study used institutional theory and dynamic capabilities theory as theoretical frameworks. The findings of the study imply that there are still no rigorous processes in place to support the contribution of older workers to the success of the organization, that legislative compliance is a key current focus, and that considerations of intersectionality between age and other aspects of diversity are emerging. These findings suggest recommendations for practice that are related to the transparency of age-related data, implementation of considered recruitment and retention strategies for older workers, and the direct involvement of older workers in technological product and service development.