How To Deal With Older Employees

When it comes to managing older employees it can often be difficult for you to understand what to do. Older workers may end up coming in late, taking more time off, and can easily cause a lot of issues for you to deal with. Handling your older employees doesn't need to be a chore or something that confuses you. Instead we have come up with some simple tips that can help you in managing an older workforce.

Treat them the same
Older employees may feel like you treat them like children. It is common to see a lot of companies have older employees that are given job duties that seem more like a simple task request rather than telling them what needs to be done. All of your employees need to be treated equally despite their age. Everyone needs to be given clear directions on what jobs need to be done rather than to have an abrasive way of approaching your employees. Treating everyone with respect and the same will give back a lot of respect to you as well.

Have good manners
When you talk to any of your employees you need to speak to them in a respectful manner. It is important that you take time to show all of your employees that you are truly appreciative of the work that they provide to your company and that you aren't playing favorites with certain employees. Having good manners will make it much easier for the older employees to respect working with you even if they do have more experience in your particular field.

Training
All of your employees need to go through training courses, not just one or two individuals. You have to focus on having all of your employees properly trained. When you do this it will show everyone that you are investing in everyone and you aren't holding a special training for older employees because you are worried that they might not be up to date with the latest technology. Everyone within the company needs to go in for training to keep their education fresh and to help them learn new skills that will really benefit the company. Sometimes you have employees that may try and make excuses for themselves about being older and therefore not able to send out emails or to know how to use "new technology". You need to make sure you are holding them accountable just like the rest of your employees. After they undergo training like the rest of your staff, they will not have an excuse.

Learn their skills
Older employees often come with a lot of great life experience that can be a huge asset to the company. You need to get to know your aging workforce and to find out what type of skills and things that they possess that they can bring to the table. It will really help in giving you a stronger company overall. You may find that certain older employees are the best to put out in direct contact with your customers as they have the right type of customer service skills that make the customers feel better about shopping at your organization.

Listen to them
Do not dismiss the information that your older workers can bring to the table. You need to listen to your employees and really learn from the information that they can give to you. They may be able to give you some tips on saving money or even new product designs and other things to progress the company. They can also become great mentors to your younger workers and can help to keep them focused and will bring out their best skills.