Economically active generations, the oldest of which are the baby boomers and the youngest – the Z generation, differ greatly from each other not only in their desire to work and their efficiency, but also in their ideas about the level of wages, working conditions and values, says Yulia Smirnova, the author of the Youth and Longevity program on Mediametry. Tired, but willing to work “because it is necessary” – these are the “baby boomers”. Many people of this generation, according to the expert, have already achieved a certain position, leadership positions and do not want to leave them. “People aged 40-57 are actively involved in the economy. This generation systematically updates its knowledge and tries to keep up with the times, maintaining the ability to work effectively for many years,” explains Smirnova.
Many companies, especially manufacturing ones, are now more open to recruiting and retaining high-level employees and are working to build effective work between teams composed of different age groups, says Ekaterina Movsesyan, general director of the CROS agency. According to her, experienced specialists can play a key role in various areas, such as production, management of complex technological projects, and are in high demand in the field of education. In addition, it is important today to create mentoring programs in which senior employees advise young specialists, allowing them to transfer accumulated knowledge and form strong teams. The head of the operational headquarters of the independent trade union “New Labor”, Alexey Nezhivoy, stresses that in the current situation of staff shortage, older people play the most important role. “Attracting experienced and qualified personnel to work can accelerate the pace of development of the Russian economy. The indexation of pensions for retirees is one of the motivators of work. But the state must solve the issue of raising the social status of retirees. Transferring experience and knowledge to young colleagues should once again be an honour. Russian companies, judging by the lack of enthusiasm for cooperating with often rude retirees, have not yet reached this point. But the well-being of entrepreneurs, as well as the success of their companies, depends on the availability of workers. Platforms, automation of production and, apparently, labour migration will become trends in the labour market,” the expert added.
