In View of Singapore’s Aging Population, What Can Hr Dept Do to Help Their Companies Function Effectively When Most of Their Employees Will Be 50 Years Old and Above.

Topic: In view of Singapore’s aging population, what can HR Dept do to help their companies function effectively when most of their employees will be 50 years old and above.

Introduction
Singapore’s workforce is aging rapidly and based on projection by the US Census Bureau, 57.4% of the Singapore population will be aged 50 and above by 2050. Recognizing the fact that the aging population and workforce may pose a number of challenges is therefore critical and urgent. HR Dept needs to implement several measures to be well prepared for their companies to remain competitive and productive.
New strategies must be based on greater understanding of the match between the workplace and the physical and mental changes of the employees. Schetagne (2001, p19) states that “less physically and demanding environment might help keep older workers on the job longer.” It is also pertinent for companies to retain the invaluable knowledge accumulated by experienced workers before it seeps out of the organization.
Managing older workers under a Total Reward approach (both financial and non financial aspects) such as the working environment, welfare, learning and development opportunities and experiences is highly recommendable.
This exercise will require effort and commitment from both the employers and their staff.
To facilitate this more efficiently, HR Dept “need to examine their practices to place greater emphasis on what individual can contribute and less on their age.”(Patrickson 1998, pp106)
To meet the challenges of creating a high-performance workplace, some of the avenues HR Dept needs to address for their companies to function more effectively are:

    • Productive and safe work places
  Understanding the different physical needs between the younger and aging workers will enable the employer to be better prepared and accommodate their workforces through appropriate workplace design.
  Age will usually reduce the elasticity in almost all tissues of the body...