Alberta employers court seniors

Firms tapping into older-worker labour force

Seniors could be the cure for Alberta's labour woes and the provincial government wants to ensure employers and seniors have all the facts.

The province's shortage of skilled workers could grow to more than 100,000 people in the next decade if nothing is done to address the issue, said a spokesman for Alberta Employment and Immigration.

To address that issue, the government hosted a three-hour mature worker form at a recent job fair in Red Deer, Alta. The forum included sessions about the pension and tax implications of working past the traditional retirement age, as well as the advantages of hiring older workers.

Some employers in that city are already aware of these advantages. The transportation department at Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools hires bus drivers up to 70 years old and the City of Red Deer has about a dozen employees over the age of 65.

But it's not only Red Deer employers that see the up-side of hiring older workers. Alberta as a whole has the highest rate of mature workers in the country, according to Statistics Canada. Labour force participation for men in their mid- to late-60s is at 40 per cent in Alberta, much higher than the national average of 24 per cent.

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