CHAPTER 3
BRINGING DOWN THE AGE BARRIER From a giant pubs chain to a regional bus company… Peter Bartram talks to enlightened employers that have scrapped the fixed retirement age and are benefiting from the skills and experience of older staff Emily Bullers, 89, is proof that you’re never too old to do a useful day’s work. She worked for Lloyds Bank in Nottingham. Then her bank became a pub— today Lloyds No. 1 Bar—and, even though Emily was old enough to retire, she switched careers. Now she works in the pub kitchen and is the oldest of J D Wetherspoon’s 21,000 employees. Emily is still in gainful employment because the pubs chain is one of a growing number of companies that has scrapped its fixed retirement age. Mandy Ferries, head of personnel and training at J D Wetherspoon, has no doubts about the value of older employees. They bring in broad experience and old-fashioned values of customer service. In the past year, the number of over-50s in J D Wetherspoon’s workforce has risen by around 20 per cent. First Hampshire and Dorset, which runs bus services around the two counties, hasn’t formally ditched its fixed retirement age but allows pensioners to keep on working. It judges each case on its merits, with operational need being a key factor, says Charley Collard, HR business partner at the company. The firm employs 23 people over 65, including engineers and bus drivers, among its 800 staff. The oldest will shortly celebrate his 76th birthday. “Allowing people to work on after normal retirement age enables us to maintain investment in their training and deliver against operational need,” says Collard.
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