In 2012, the Australian government launched a new initiative that will pay employers to hire older workers. Employers will receive \($1000\) for every worker aged 50 or older that they hire and retain for at least three months. The government has committed \($10\) million over four years to the Jobs Bonus initiative in response to a report which highlights the value of older workers.

According to Mark Butler, the Minister for Ageing, “We still need to deal with a cultural issue in the Australian business community that sometimes looks past the value of older workers. We know that older workers have lower absenteeism, they have higher retention rates, and they bring with them extraordinary wisdom and experience. We just need to push through this barrier that some Australian employers still have.”

However, according to Susan Eng, vice-president of advocacy at CARP, a Toronto-based advocacy group for people over 50, this may not be the right course of action. “I understand the motivation but I’m not particularly thrilled with the method. It suggests that an older worker is somehow flawed and you, therefore, have to pay somebody to hire them,” she said. “If you’re trying to resolve and overcome age discrimination in hiring, why reinforce this stereotype by offering a sweetener?”

What do you think about the Australian government’s Jobs Bonus initiative? Do perceptions have anything to do with this initiative? Do you think this will help or hurt older workers and the perception and stereotype of them? Is this something that Canadian governments should consider doing? What are the implications for employees and organizations?