Policy paper

Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach

This publication encourages businesses to retain, retrain and recruit older workers and presents the benefits of a fuller working life.

This was published under the 2016 to 2019 May Conservative government

Documents

Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email accessible.formats@dwp.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Rich text format (RTF): Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email accessible.formats@dwp.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

OpenDocument text (ODT): Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach

Request an accessible format.
If you use assistive technology (such as a screen reader) and need a version of this document in a more accessible format, please email accessible.formats@dwp.gov.uk. Please tell us what format you need. It will help us if you say what assistive technology you use.

Details

‘Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach’ explains how as the population ages, employers need to draw on the skills and experience of older workers to avoid loss of labour. It also explains how working longer can improve the health and wellbeing of individuals and bring the benefits of a multi-generational workforce to businesses. It sets out a number of new recommendations directly from businesses to support older workers to remain in the workforce and to help employers retain, retrain and recruit older workers so they have fuller working lives.

Recommendations around flexible working, retraining for a new career, self-employment, volunteering and phased retirement are put forward in the policy paper.

We intend to take the following actions to support older workers:

  • empowering change through others – developing an evidence-based case for action
  • supporting those who need more help – including women, carers, people with long-term health conditions and disabilities and black and minority ethnic groups
  • reforming the Adult Skills system
  • improving the Jobcentre Plus offer for older workers

We have published background evidence to support this publication.

The following Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) research reports also contribute to the Fuller Working Lives: a partnership approach strategy:

Updates to this page

Published 2 February 2017

Sign up for emails or print this page