Developing gender-sensitive tools to promote employability and the reintegration of 'older persons' in selected branches of industry.
Module: Now_Age_Base. New perspectives - words - realities

The overall aim of the EQUAL development partnership AGEpowerment is to support the (re)integration of 'older employees' into the regular labour market by developing new perspectives, models and solutions concerning the so called generation '45+'. Although forecasts predict that the overall average age will rise in the future, this tendency has not yet been reflected on the level of recruiting and personnel management. Still there is a tendency towards rejuvenating the staff in many organizations. Hence, beyond the age of 45 the chances of getting a new job are reduced significantly. Affected by this ageism are mostly older unemployed persons and among them women in particular.

The development partnership AGEpowerment therefore develops, implements, evaluates and diffuses gender-sensitive tools to (re)integrate older unemployed and employed persons in selected branches of industry (retail, business-to-business services, health-care, veterinary and social services and other services).

Therefore, the development partnership operates at different levels in the different modules. One module focuses on developing age-sensitive methods of learning, one aims at activating the psychic and physic health and another one develops business and personnel concepts with regard to an ageing workforce. The module Now_Age_Base at the Research Group for Gender and Diversity in Organizations develops new gender-sensitive life-phase models. As biographies and life conceptions change and become more and more instable, the module focuses on deconstructing existing pictures and attributions for 'older people' and thereby initiating reflection and social change. The aim is accordingly to develop differentiated models and pictures that correspond to older peoples' work and life realities.

Duration: July 2006 - December 2007
Contractor: European Union Initiative EQUAL and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Economics and Labour
Project Manager (Module Now_Age_Base): Mag.^a Roswitha Hofmann
Project Team: Mag.^a Helga Eberherr, Mag. Alexander Fleischmann