Singapore - For employees in the healthcare industry, SingHealth definitely believes that old is gold - as older employees are more usually more dependable and experienced.
Speaking at a conference organised by the Institute of Policy Studies and the Tsao Foundation on successful ageing in Singapore, Geraldine Lee, group human resources director for SingHealth shared with civil servants and policy makers some of the organisation's strategies in reintegrating and retaining a large bulk of its mature employees.
With Singapore's ageing population, the nation will see 29% of workers aged 50 and above by 2015, Lee says. As of September 2008, 14.8% of SingHealth's 14,000-strong workforce comprised of employees 50 years and above, of which 2.7% are aged 60 and above.
Hence, the organisation has taken steps to ensure that it retains its mature workers, by re-employing workers who have reached the legal retirement age of 62. And so far, the organisation has successfully retained 80% of its employees in that category, Lee adds.
In order to retain the organisation's mature workers, SingHealth has adopted HR policies such encouraging employees to comstantly learn and upgrade in areas in which they think would help enhance their career, flexible work arrangements and utilising retirees as a contigent workforce. The organisation has also adopted recruiting fair employment practices whereby the company looks at people "based on their merits and experiences", Lee adds.
SingHealth has also started a movement called Silver Connection, which is aimed at enhancing the well-being and employability of mature workers. Launched in September 2006, Silver Connection not only taps into the current group of employees, but it also tries to tap into a group of retirees. Since its launch, the group has provided over 800 employees with personal financial planning and personal effectiveness workshops. And as such, Helen Lim, programme consultant at Silver Connection says the workshops have a renewed sense of staying employed and connected.
Silver Connection also tries to connect mature workers with fulfilling job opportunities. One example Lim cites is a group of 45 retired midwives who have undergone a refresher course in 2007 and have since assisted in the post-natal care of 238 newborns.
"SingHealth is a very enlightened organisation. It believes in not discriminating against age, and that older does not mean less productive. And we look in terms of talent and opportunities, rather than jobs and positions. And the outcome is that we promote activing ageing, successful ageing," Lim says.
