Employment placement agencies tout value of older workers

Gray hair on top may mean a better employee overall. As a whole, older workers bring such assets to the job as dependability, good customer service qualities, and a real interest in doing the job according to representatives of Senior Recruiters Inc., 3451 S. Camp-bell, Ste. G, Penmac Personnel Services, 447 South Ave., and Experience Works (formerly Green Thumb Inc.), 732 N. 22nd St. in Ozark.

Eric Naegler, president, Senior Re-cruiters Inc., said his slogan is "Baby Boomers are better."

Patti Penny, president, Penmac Personnel Ser-vices, cited dependability as an important quality.

"That's our greatest problem with younger people as a whole. They are just not as responsible. Older people grew up in a time that wasn't as affluent and they had to do the work or be punished by losing their jobs. The older worker, generally speaking, is more committed," she said.

Phillis Peach, field coordinator at Ex-perience Works, reiterated "dependability" as a plus. She mentioned the "work ethic" they bring to the job and "their influence on younger employees." Additionally, Peach said, "There is a wealth of information in a lot of the older workers."

Reasons to work

Naegler believes it's not the money but "as people get older they will follow their passion," and they are more likely to turn down work they aren't interested in pursuing, he said.

Peach agreed that there are many reasons why older people want to return to work.

"They've got the honey-do list done, traveling isn't what they thought it would be, expenses go up and they can use extra money. Illnesses wipe out retirement savings. Or when the husband passes away, the retirement check stops. But the major reason is boredom and they don't want to get old in their thinking. They want to keep their minds active and have reasons to get up and go," Peach said.

According to Penny, "They don't come to us with desperation. They are more inclined to find work to supplement their incomes or to learn new skillsthe computer is very popular."

Some seniors, though, do need money, and agencies can help them find ways to earn what they need.

For example, at Experience Works the Senior Community Service Employment Program specifically helps low-income individuals who are 55 years and older to find employment.

All kinds of jobs

The types of jobs available for mature workers depend upon individual skills and requirements.

"The most important part of any job search is a job fit. What we try to do is determine what the fit is. We've had very good success," Naegler said.

"One thing we've noticed is there are a lot of career changes. People are going into entry level jobs, many by choice," he added.

On the other hand, Penny said Penmac doesn't get many workers who request work totally different than what they've done in the past.

Also, Penny said, "Usually their first requirement is the right hours because they have another life hobbies, travel. They want to work when they want to work. The challenge is to match what we have available to their skill level and time sche-dule."

Peach added that usually, the kinds of jobs older workers seek are less physical.

More training

Often additional training is available through the employment agencies or other places such as the Missouri Career Center, which Naegler calls a "tremendous resource."

Penmac also encourages those who need a general equivalency diploma to get one with a $500 bonus for completing their GED and working with Penmac for 90 days.

Pyramid Group, an in-home service provider, with a location in Springfield at 225 E. Commercial, participates in the Senior Community Service Employ-ment Program sponsored by The U.S. Forest Service for unemployed workers age 55 or older who meet minimum in-come requirements. Andrew Jones, vice president of operations, called it "an ex-citing program" and said the kinds of jobs available are homemaker aides and personal care aides.

"It is also extremely important to Pyramid Group to take the time to train individuals who truly want to go to work each day and remain in the work force," Jones said in a news release.

Roadblocks

Sometimes older workers re-entering the work force or changing careers can find themselves facing difficulty, but that problem is not uncommon.

"If there is a barrier, it's because as we get older, we have a harder time knowing how to present ourselves to prospective employers. It's easier to think the problem is discrimination rather than we don't have the skills," Naegler said.

The forecast

Optimism's the key when it comes to what's expected for older workers in the year to come, according to Naegler.

"2002 is going to be very good. Em-ployers are going to have to become in tune with the whole work force in-cluding older workers," he said.

Peach called the use of older workers "a win-win situation for the person and the employer. The employer benefits be-cause of the mature worker's experience, know-how and dependability. I've seen many workers blossom after going back to work." And, she added, "It definitely helps the economy."