Innovation: Solidarity of generations

Poland

AAI Domains:

• Employment (extending working life after 50)

• Independent, healthy and secure living (financial security)

Poland in the last decade has experienced both a significant rise in living standards towards the European average and the movement of large numbers of people in the prime years of their working lives to other European Union states. One of the results of these trends has been the prospect of Poland facing a shortage of labour in the future and it is in this context that Poland’s relatively low level of labour market participation among older workers is particularly important.

Since the financial crisis of 2007–08 the proportion of older workers, defined as being over the age of 50 years, has increased but it is still considerably lower than the average rate for this group across the EU. Poland has embarked on the solidarity of generations with a focus on the labour market position of older workers and the Senior Citizens Social Activity (ASOS) programme for the numerous dimensions of active and healthy ageing beyond paid work.

The Ministry of Labour and Social Policy and the Human Resources Development Centre run a national information and promotional campaign to promote the benefits and value of employing older workers who have experience and maturity. This is to promote cultural changes in attitudes and challenge negative stereotypes about older workers that are a necessary pre-requisite for substantive economic and social changes that can then mobilise the potential of older workers.

Another element has been to develop and encourage good practice in age management practices in organisations so that negative stereotypes and age discrimination in the workplace can be addressed, this work has been supported by AGE Platform Europe. This has included age-friendly job design, greater flexibility and control over work and greater recognition of the experience and expertise that older workers have in the workplace.

A further feature has been the introduction of wage subsidies of up to 50% of the monthly minimum wage for employers who recruit unemployed older workers who are aged 50 years or more for a period of up to 12 months and up to 24 months if the unemployed worker is 60 years old or older. The employer must guarantee continuing employment for at least a further half of the period of the wage subsidy (6 or 12 months) when it has been completed.

Employers are exempted from obligations to pay contributions to the Labour Fund and towards the Guaranteed Employee Benefits thus lowering the marginal costs of older workers. Finally, the National Training Fund (KFS) has been created to finance education and training with a focus on workers aged 45 years and over in order to develop skills and improve productivity.

In relation to active ageing this is a comprehensive example of a range of innovative labour market policies to promote the employment of older workers. There has been an improvement in the labour market performance and position of older workers in Poland in recent years although the extent to which this can be attributed to these interventions is subject to economic debate and interpretation. Active ageing is also about so much more than extending the working lives of people, although paid work and employment do play a part in the process of ageing well.

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