On 22 May, a meeting of the interested parties took place about the IntegrAGE project, funded under the 2021-2027 Interreg Danube Region Programme. The project is aimed at keeping elderly employees stay longer on the labour market. Representatives of employers, companies, trade unions and academia participated in the meeting. The purpose of the event was to discuss the challenges, faced by employers in relation to the demographic problems, which almost all countries in Europe have, and to find solutions to these challenges.
The participants discussed the measures, which employers can take with the purpose of keeping the employees, covered by the project's target group, for example: a flexible hybrid model of work which combines presence in the office and teleworking; introduction of a part-time work model (from 4 to 6 working hours); the provision of an additional medical service and regular medical check-ups; continuing education to develop digital competences; a preretirement programme and incentives; digital training; using the method of "reverse mentoring" which means that young colleagues pass on their digital knowledge and skills to older colleagues, acquainting them with different types of digital applications and the use of new technologies.
Special attention was paid to the social entrepreneurship opportunities, from which the 55+ age group representatives, who are willing to start their own business, can benefit. Along these lines, getting suitable stimulation from the state would be helpful, as would the availability of low-interest lending.
In view of the identified problems and with the purpose of creating a more sustainable and inclusive labour market, it is necessary for the government, employers and trade unions to put in coordinated efforts in the direction of:
-improving employment policies: introduction of retraining and educational programmes aimed at elderly employees;
-stimulating employers: providing tax relief and subsidies to companies which hire or keep elderly employees;
-flexible working conditions: enhancing the opportunities for teleworking, part-time work and flexible working time;
-raising awareness: campaigns to raise the awareness of the benefits from hiring and keeping elderly employees and to combat the prejudices about their efficiency and adaptability.
The need for digital training was discussed as well in relation to the currently developed training modules and their contents.
The IntegrAGE project is implemented by a consortium of partners from Austria, Bulgaria, Latvia and Serbia.
On the BCCI website www.bcci.bg, as well as in the publications in the daily online edition of ‘Infobusiness’, you can track the progress of the project implementation, planned activities and developed training modules, as well as the results from the surveys and the conclusions drawn.