Employment of the elderly: Social imperatives and barriers in contemporary Russia

Based on the expert survey of the Russian HR-managers on the employment of the elderly (the project “Specifics of employment and career of the elderly in contemporary Russia” was conducted in November 2020 - January 2021), the authors present the ideas of HR-managers on the problems in the employment of the elderly and strategies to solve them in the current Russian conditions. In the post-industrial society, older generations can, want and often need to work. The main motives for their employment are not only economic - the need to have an additional income (urgent need for money, feeling of financial independence, need to help children), but also social motives (fear of losing a proactive lifestyle, loss of social status and ability to keep social networks). According to the HR-specialists, older workers have many positive qualities for employment; however, some of these qualities are considered as the elderly’s willingness to accept any (non-prestigious and low-paid) job. Educational programs for older workers are underdeveloped in Russian organizations: even if there are such, they are formal or created by public employment services. Experts are positive about the state’s support for the employment of older people and consider it a primary condition for improving the situation. At the same time, experts support traditional administrative measures that require some budget funding. The survey identified age discrimination as the most important problem of the elderly’s employment as based on the stereotypes of HR-managers. Solving this problem seems to be the most important condition for improving the employment of older people in Russia - by developing educational programs, improving the institution of mentoring (in direct and reverse forms) and fair assessment of the older job candidates.