The Journal of Aging and Social Change offers an annual award for newly published research or thinking that has been recognized to be outstanding by members of the Aging & Social Change Research Network.
Sweden recently revised the age limits in the retirement and employment protection provisions. As of 2023, Swedes can receive a public pension from the age of 63 and have a protected right to continue working until they turn 69 years old. These revisions are part of a reform of the pension system initiated in the 1990s to establish an economically sustainable system in view of the increase in life expectancy. Positive communication from the government accompanies these changes, stating that we now live longer, are healthier and more active, and that we therefore can, as well as would like to, keep working. Simultaneously, there are reports of age discrimination on the labor market. From a point of departure in ageism and social norms, an analysis of selected government agencies’ recruitments, anti-discrimination policies and interviews was carried out to explore recruitment practices related to older adults. Findings show that despite a flexible retirement age and respondents’ claims of the irrelevance of age in recruitment, older adults are recruited to a lesser extent than other age categories and that anti-discrimination measures regarding recruitment and age are scarce. Although references are made to adherence to legislation and competence-based recruitment methods, the combined service merits (employment length) and competence assessments do not seem to fall in favor of older adults. While statements maintaining that fewer older adults are among applicants might be valid, the findings indicate that social expectations (norms) among government agencies, agency employees and older applicants affect the absence of older adults in government agency recruitments.
Sweden’s policy shift towards flexible retirement age and extended work life as well as the resistance of the labour force to this policy has sparked debate on its causes and the measures needed to address this situation. With the focus on government agencies’ employment practices of older adults, the present study contributes with new research results in the field of agism. The study also presents an alternative perspective on the problem area by applying ideas on social norms in the analysis, i.e., how social expectations influence a society’s views on older adults on the job market. This is particularly interesting when addressing social change and discussion as an important factor in achieving this change. The extraordinary response rate, with 112 of the 120 selected agencies responding to the survey, strengthens the results and benefits the participating agencies themselves with its specific relevance to their own employment practices. Furthermore, also other strands of society benefit from a focus on issues of the existing expectations in society on older adults as job applicants and their im(mobility) on the job market. This includes the employer’s organization for government agencies as well as other employers’ organizations, trade unions, senior citizens’ organizations, the human rights and social justice community. In the course of the study, somewhat unexpected insights were gained from the data collected. Although the assumptions that preceded the study were partly met, i.e., that older adults were employed to a lesser extent than younger and middle-aged adults in government agency recruitments, the data also indicated that the issue is complex. This was explained by the interviewees as older adults being less present among applicants and less mobile in the labour market, not that they are less competent. In fact, an immobility or lock-in effect of older adults on the job market can be detected. This indicates that there are social expectations, both external and internal, that make older adults less likely to seek new employment. The extent to which this is true, including the reasons for this, would be interesting and important topics to investigate further.
—Lisbeth Segerlund
Supported Decision-Making in the Japanese Context: Developments and Challenges
Yukio Sakurai, The International Journal of Aging and Social Change, Volume 13, Issue 1, pp.151-169
Bruce Walmsley, Roslyn G. Poulos, and Christopher J. Poulos, The International Journal of Aging and Social Change, Volume 12, Issue 1, pp.103-118
Laura Funk, Andrea Rounce, and Danielle Cherpako, The International Journal of Aging and Social Change, Volume 11, Issue 1, pp.81-97
Livable and Age-Friendly Communities: A Scoping Review of Conceptual Frameworks
Jill Chonody, and Barbra Teater, The International Journal of Aging and Social Change, Volume 10, Issue 1, pp.35-53
Ceri Wilson, Anna Dadswell, Carol Munn-Giddings, and Hilary Bungay, The International Journal of Aging and Social Change, Volume 9, Issue 4, pp.1–16
Cristina Joy Torgé, The International Journal of Aging and Social Change, Volume 8, Issue 1, pp.45–60
Patrick Burden, The International Journal of Aging and Society, Volume 7, Issue 4, pp.73–82
From Aging in Community to Age-friendly Community: Translating Applied Research into Practice
Kathy Black and Kathyrn Hyer, The International Journal of Aging and Society, Volume 6, Issue 4, pp.59-71
Let’s Talk about Dying: Proposals for Encouraging Discussion of Advance-care Planning
Rosemary Venne, Donna Goodridge, Elizabeth Quinlan, and Paulette Hunter, The International Journal of Aging and Society, Volume 5, Issue 4, pp.33–46
The Role of Food in Supporting Healthy Aging: A Stakeholder Perspective
Orla Collins and Joe Bogue, The International Journal of Aging and Society, Volume 4, Issue 3-4, pp.1–12
Exploring Older People’s Perspectives of Community Organizing: A Photovoice Study in the Philippines
Crystal Kwan and Christine A. Walsh, The International Journal of Aging and Society, Volume 3, Issue 1, pp.15–30
The Role and Contribution of Philanthropy to the Lives of Older People in Ireland
Andy Cochrane, Sinéad McGilloway, Mairéad Furlong, and Michael Donnelly, The International Journal of Aging and Society, Volume 2, Issue 2, 13–23