United Kingdom: Study Released on Workplace Design and the Older Worker

The Strategic Promotion of Ageing Research Capacity (SPARC) has released a study of older workers that finds that their motivation to continue to work could be greatly improved if more attention was paid to both the way they are managed and their physical working environments. According to "Workplace Design for the Older Worker", led by Professor Peter Buckle of the University of Surrey, this could include small steps to reduce the physical consequences of manual work, such as redesigning equipment and training workers in its use. The research also suggests that scheduling work in a way which respects the capabilities of the older worker may become more important as the workforce ages. According to Buckle:

Our research has enabled us to create a new model which identifies factors important to the ageing workforce. By mapping existing practices to the new model, and by identifying and resolving areas of difference, organisations and managers will be able to maintain and motivate their older workforce.

In addition, the impact of shift work is identified as a cause of some health concerns, as is the working environment (dust, heat and noise), to which older workers are more sensitive, and manual tasks such as lifting and manipulating heavy objects.

See also, a presentation on "Understanding the Design of the Workplace for the Older Worker" at a workshop jointly organized by SPARC and TAEN discussing showcasing the research.

Source: Strategic Promotion of Ageing Research Capacity News Release (January 22, 2008)

IBM, Universities Collaborate on Technology Tools to Assist Older Workers

IBM has announced that it is collaborating with researchers at the University of Dundee School of Computing (UK) and the University of Miami's Miller School of Medicine to develop open source software technology tools to accommodate the needs of older workers to help them adapt to and remain productive in the changing workplace of the 21st century. In particular, the focus is to support maturing workers who have age-related disabilities by finding new ways to increase their comfort level and ability to use technology, to develop and integrate structures, systems, tools, and processes that facilitate the inclusion of more people, irrespective of their age, abilities or personal challenges.

"This collaboration is a superb opportunity for the group in Dundee to apply our wide experience of research with older people, and of developing better ways of accessing technology, in an exciting new transatlantic partnership with IBM and the Miller Medical School in Miami," said Professor Peter Gregor, Head of the School of Computing at the University of Dundee. "The open source focus makes the challenges particularly rewarding because it means that knowledge gained and systems developed will be available freely to the people who need them and to other developers."

Source: IBM Press Release (November 18, 2007)

IBM Unveils Portfolio of Accessibility Technologies

At its annual PartnerWorld Conference, IBM introduced a range of solutions and developers' tools that open up the Internet and other information technology to the aging workforce and people with disabilities. Among other things, IBM demonstrated n is its talking Web browser, the Home Page Reader version 3.04, a tool for developers to test Web pages for accessibility early in the prototype and design stage as well as after the content or application has been deployed. Among the products designed to help businesses meet both growing regulatory requirements and the needs of employees and customers who are elderly, IBM specifically points out that seniors and first-time Internet users appreciate the simple user interface provided by IBM's "Easy Web Browsing" for computer users who have low vision and can use the mouse. IBM offers more information on IBM's accessibility information technology for employees, customers and Business Partners on its web site.

Source: Press Release IBM (March 2, 2005)

Bringing Solutions for Older Workers to Homogeneous Design Community

Writing after delivering a keynote address at the third international conference on universal design, organized by Boston-based nonprofit Adaptive Environments, Susan S. Szenasy, Metropolis Editor in Chief, reports on repeated indictments of design professionals:

"Architects don't want anyone to use their buildings," laments an aging advocate of accessible design. "Designers are ageists," another notes. "The design professions are populated by a young workforce that tends to design for its peers; they're unsympathetic to the aged."

Looking for a solution, she wonders about the lively debates that might occur in design studios if design and architecture schools start to attract older, more mature students who bring the real-life experiences of aging and disability into the studio.

Source: "Designing for Diversity" Metropolis Magazine (March 2005; posted February 22, 2005)

Improving Internet Access for Aging Workforce

Article in Internet Week touting IBM's Home Page Reader Web browser for Windows that automatically enhances websites to make them easier to use by seniors and others with less-than-ideal eyesight also talks about how this can help in the workplace, too:

Improving access to the Internet and computers is also expected to help the nation's aging workforce. Workers between the ages 55 and 64 are increasing in population by about 2 percent per year. Among those with disabilities, half of them work full or part-time on a computer, according to figures from the NOD and the Center for Retirement Research at Boston College.

Source: "Making The Web A Sight For Sore Eyes" Internet Week January 26, 2005

Tools: Home Page Reader 3.04, which includes Trial Downloads and Complimenary Download customized for AAPD visitors.