In a climate where employers are struggling to find and keep skilled workers it is remarkable that a substantial portion of Australia's workforce has been overlooked, mostly because of false stereotypes.
Specialist recruiter Hays surveyed 3500 individuals and discovered that 50% of mature-age workers aged 45 to 64 were likely to stay in a position for more than four years.
In comparison, nearly half of the employees surveyed under the age of 45 remained in a position less than two years, while only 28% of the mature-age workers stayed for that length of time.
"There are many advantages to recruiting mature-age workers, and this survey highlights another - their expected tenure," Hays Construction & Property director Grahame Doyle said.
"Not only do these candidates bring skills and experience gained over many years to a workplace, they will also remain with an organisation longer, and in doing so they help reduce overall recruitment costs and increase a company's retention rate."
With the ongoing skills shortage, Doyle said recruitment of mature-age workers was a potential solution, but employers would have to bin any negative stereotypes they were hanging on to.
"Unfortunately, some [employers] focus on the negative and incorrect stereotypes about mature-age workers, such as they are set in their ways, only want part-time work, or are inept with technology," he said.
"The reverse is usually true - many mature-age workers want permanent full-time work, are looking for job stability, pick up new technology very quickly and are more than willing to try new ways of doing business.
"In fact, they've generally got great ideas to bring to the table based on their wealth of past experience."
To avoid a high employee turnover, Doyle said businesses need to implement active retention plans to make workplaces more attractive.
"Skills are in demand and as the market for professionals continues to tighten, employees will be increasingly lured by benefits or offers available elsewhere," he said.
"So in a climate of increased employment opportunities, where competition for the best possible staff remains high, employers do need to focus on retention to create a positive employment experience for their staff."
Results from respondents surveyed:
Mature-age workers
Rest of workforce
