Senior Workers Research Articles

Perspective of international activities on nuclear knowledge management and proposals for further refinements

Concerns are raised world-wide on the ageing of nuclear manpower, widespread retirements of senior workers within the past several years, the decline of nuclear education and training and the resulting shortage of nuclear manpower supply. The OECD/NEA and the IAEA started formulating activities regarding these concerns, which elaborate on the ways of expanding these activities. At this moment, it will be worthwhile to review the programme and activities from the viewpoint of their origins. This paper discusses the nature of the issue, proposes a conceptual model for manpower demand and supply, and raises an issue regarding the possibility of manpower shortage propagation from the advanced countries to the developing countries. International activities are also reviewed and proposals for further refinements of nuclear knowledge management activities are made.

Generational Conflict and its Impact of Work Behavior and Attitudes

Building commitment and preventing costly turnover are key challenges facing organizations today. This paper examines whether the fulfilled elements of the employment relationship that predict commitment and willingness to change companies vary significantly with age. Using a sample of 270 employees working in retail stores, it was found that in comparison to those under 30, fulfilling the need for a pleasant environment is more strongly related to the commitment of more senior workers. Providing for career advancement opportunities enhances the desire of younger employees to remain with their companies. In contrast, employees aged 45 and over are more willing to remain with the organization when employers provide for adequate resources and support. Providing employability development opportunities enhances commitment and reduces the willingness to quit and neglectful behavior for employees as a whole.

A training programme for healthcare support workers

Healthcare support workers (HCSWs) are at the front line of patient care delivery. It is essential that they are appropriately trained and competent in the skills required to deliver the fundamentals of care. There is also a need for HCSWs to have access to continuing professional development that offers a career pathway. The University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust has developed a framework for career progression that incorporates three phases of continuing professional development. These are organised and co-ordinated by a dedicated support worker training team comprising four registered nurses plus senior support workers in the role of peripatetic NVQ Care assessors.

OPHTHALMIC SYMPTOMS AMONG LIGHT-ON TEST WORKERS IN THE TFT-LCD INDUSTRY

ISEE-419 Introduction: The TFT-LCD (thin film transistor liquid crystal display) manufacturing is a fast growing sector of electronic industry in Taiwan. Many workers perform the so-call “light-on test” procedure during the manufacturing process to detect defects in the products. At light-on test workstations, operators are exposed to flashing lights, low ambient illumination, and low humidity (in “clean room”) for long periods of time (average 12 hours per working day). Few researches, if any, have been conducted to evaluate the ophthalmologic effects of working at light-on test workstations. We therefore carried out a study to asses the prevalence of ophthalmologic symptoms among these workers and evaluate its association with the duration of employment. Methods: We used “visual fatigue self-assessment table” to evaluate all light-on test workers in a large TFT-LCD factory. This table has eight items, including eye pain, blurred vision at far distance, unable to focus from near distance to far distance, blurred vision at near distance, change of color perception, red eyes, increased eye discharge, and eye dryness. We defined a case of “ophthalmic discomfort syndrome” as a worker who had any one of the above eight items. We compared the prevalence of the ophthalmic discomfort syndrome between those who had worked at light-on test workstation for more than 1 year (the study group) and those who had worked for less than 3 months (the referent group). Results: We included all 319 workers who had worked at light-on test workstations of a large TFT-LCD factory. All of them were women and worked by four-shift rotations. The average age was 24.2 (SD=3.8) years, and the average employment duration was 13.6 (SD=5.7) months. The overall prevalence of ophthalmic discomfort syndrome was 69.3% (221 cases). The prevalence of each symptom was 43.3% for “eye dryness,” 30.0% for “eye itching,” 16.0% for “red eyes,” and 11.0% for “eye pain.” We found the prevalence of ophthalmic discomfort syndrome of the study group was significantly higher than that of the referent group (75.5% vs. 32.9%, P<0.001 for chi-square test of the difference). Discussion: A high prevalence of ophthalmic discomfort syndrome was observed among light-on test workers, and senior workers had a higher prevalence than junior workers. Further researches to identify the risk factors are needed to guide the prevention and control measures.

The Participation of Senior Workers in Vocational Rehabilitation Services

As social awareness focuses on the needs of an aging labor force, the rehabilitation profession must broaden its appeal to an aging population. Currently, the participation rate of older persons in vocational services is low. Vocational rehabilitation services have much to offer seniors who work for financial, social, or emotional reasons. The rehabilitation counselor's knowledge of the workplace, knowledge of disability, and commitment to inclusion can assist many older adults who have a disability in maintaining employment.

The Aging US Workforce

This article addresses the following key points: Senior workers comprise 10 percent of the United States' workforce but account for 22 percent of its job growth. Defined benefit plans for S&P 500 corporations are expected to be underfunded by US$245 billion for 2003. Significant cash must be redirected to pay pension obligations and retiree benefits for seriously underfunded plans as opposed to being reinvested in business operations.

The Application of a Job Exposure Matrix in the Natural Gas Industry

A questionnaire was designed, implemented, and analyzed, using a job exposure matrix format, to profile jobs in the Pipeline Division of a natural gas company with respect to possible hazardous exposures. The categories of chemical, physical, ergonomic, biological, and psychological hazards were surveyed. The first stage was to formulate and confirm a list of hazardous agents extant within the Pipeline Operations. This was done by making on-site observations and interviewing safety supervisors and workers, as well as by exploring the literature on the natural gas industry. The second stage of the project entailed the collection of data about whether a particular hazardous agent was present at a location, and if so, which workers were exposure to it, and at what intensity and frequency they were exposed. This assessment was made by groups identified as expert assessors, senior workers who were familiar with the processes and range of job titles at their locations. These experienced workers rated all job titles for workers at that site. The final stage of the project was to critically examine and validate the data collected. Three analyses were performed. The first was a comparison of the assessments with known outcomes of the medical surveillance testing that was completed in 1995. Secondly, the agreement between the assessments done by the expert assessor group, and a rating done by the jobholder, was examined. Finally, consideration was given to the sureness expressed by each of the rating groups about the analysis they had provided.

Foreign Ownership, Microelectronic Technology and Skills: Evidence for British Establishments

This paper uses the Workplace Employee Relations Survey panel for 1990–1998 to investigate the relationship between foreign ownership, skill-structure and use of microelectronic technologies in British establishments. We find that foreign-owned establishments are early adopters of new microelectronic technologies and employ more non-manual workers (more senior technical professional workers, less skilled manual workers). Because foreign-owned establishments are early adopters of new technology, an increase in foreign ownership can partly explain a recent improvement in the relative position of skilled workers in Britain.

The Application of a Job Exposure Matrix in the Natural Gas Industry

A questionnaire was designed, implemented, and analyzed, using a job exposure matrix format, to profile jobs in the Pipeline Division of a natural gas company with respect to possible hazardous exposures. The categories of chemical, physical, ergonomic, biological, and psychological hazards were surveyed. The first stage was to formulate and confirm a list of hazardous agents extant within the Pipeline Operations. This was done by making on-site observations and interviewing safety supervisors and workers, as well as by exploring the literature on the natural gas industry. The second stage of the project entailed the collection of data about whether a particular hazardous agent was present at a location, and if so, which workers were exposure to it, and at what intensity and frequency they were exposed. This assessment was made by groups identified as expert assessors, senior workers who were familiar with the processes and range of job titles at their locations. These experienced workers rated all job titles for workers at that site. The final stage of the project was to critically examine and validate the data collected. Three analyses were performed. The first was a comparison of the assessments with known outcomes of the medical surveillance testing that was completed in 1995. Secondly, the agreement between the assessments done by the expert assessor group, and a rating done by the jobholder, was examined. Finally, consideration was given to the sureness expressed by each of the rating groups about the analysis they had provided.

Four Pillars, Four Solutions: Pension Reform and Insurance Opportunities

The European population is aging due to the large post-war baby boom generation, low fertility rates and the structural trend towards longer life expectancy. The elderly dependency ratio, i.e., the ratio of people over 65 years of age compared to those of 15 to 64 years, will increase rapidly in Europe. Central forecasts by the European Commission show that Europe’s elderly dependency ratio will double, from 24 today, to 48 in 2040. 1 The increasing share of the elderly means fewer people to pay for pensions, and more people enjoying pension benefits. The result is upward pressure on pension premiums and downward pressure on pension benefits. Governments will face serious problems in financing state pensions, which could result in upward pressure on long-term interest rates due to a higher capital demand. Furthermore, a higher elderly dependency ratio limits labour supply, which will push wages higher, especially for the highly skilled. Higher interest rates and wage costs will reduce Europe’s growth prospects. At the same time, senior workers will be demanding solid pensions and flexibility in their choice between work, education and leisure. How can we meet senior workers’ demands and finance future pensions at the same time? A significant and structural increase in productivity growth and a substantial increase in labour participation rates could offset the ‘‘grey’’ European outlook by creating high growth in production, wealth and tax revenues. This paper, however, focuses on solutions within the European insurance and pension sector. First, we stress the need for sweeping pension reform and a substantially lower implicit tax on work at older ages. Secondly, actual pension reform across Europe is described. Then, four possible solutions to finance future pensions and to meet senior workers’ needs are presented:

Age effects on the predictors of technical workers' commitment and willingness to turnover

AbstractBuilding commitment and preventing costly turnover of technical employees are key challenges facing organizations today. We examine whether the elements of the employment relationship that predict commitment and willingness to change companies vary significantly with age. Using a sample of over 3000 technical professionals from six large companies, we find that in comparison to those under 30, satisfaction with job security is more strongly related to the commitment of more senior workers (ages 31–45 and those over age 45) and to their desire to remain with their companies. In contrast, satisfaction with work–life balance is more strongly related to commitment of those under age 30 than those over 30. Also, for the under‐30s, satisfaction with opportunities to develop technical skills and pay linked to individual performance has a stronger negative relationship with willingness to change companies than for those over 45. While statistically significant, the size of the age effects is small, suggesting popular and managerial attention devoted to differences among age groups may be overblown. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.

Productivity, seniority and wages: new evidence from personnel data

Wages may be observed to increase with seniority because of firm-specific human capital accumulation or because of self-selection of better workers in longer jobs. In both these cases, the upward sloping wage profile in cross-sectional regressions would reflect higher productivity of more senior workers. If this were true, the observation of an effect of seniority on wages would depend on the presence of controls for individual productivity. In this paper we replicate, using personnel data from a large Italian firm, the results of the pioneering work of Medoff and Abraham [Quarterly Journal of Economics (1980); The Journal of Human Resources, 15(2) (1981)] in which supervisors' evaluations were used as productivity indicators. Since the validity of supervisors' evaluations as measures of productivity has been widely criticised, we extend the work of Medoff and Abraham using different direct measures of productivity based on recorded absenteeism and misconduct episodes. Both these indicators and supervisors' evaluation suggest that the observed effect of seniority on wages does not reflect a higher productivity of more senior workers. Only at the lowest levels of the firm's hierarchy, the human capital theory contributes to explain the effect of seniority on wages. At least at all other levels, the explanation of the observed upward sloping profile has to be based on theories in which wages are deferred for incentive or insurance reasons.

Impact of Replacing a Defined Benefit Pension with a Defined Contribution Plan or a Cash Balance Plan

Four pension plan conversions are examined to determine the impact on retirement benefits of workers. The study was based on interviews with top management, employee surveys, and actuarial analysis of retirement benefits under the old and new pension plans. In general, workers who leave the firm prior to the age of early retirement can expect increased benefits under the new defined contribution and cash balance plans, whereas older, more senior workers can expect to accrue smaller benefits after the plan conversions. Recognizing these potential adverse effects, the employers in our studies provided various types of transition benefits to existing workers or gave employees the choice of remaining in the old defined benefit plan. Employee surveys reveal that younger workers are more supportive of the new pension plans than are older workers. These case studies also indicate that communication by managements with their employees is very important to the successful implementation of plan conversions.

Issues for the consulting behavior analyst: Don't just implement a treatment plan, use the ecology to practice a treatment plan.

Currently distance consulting takes place mental health rehabilitation centers, mental retardation rehabilitation centers, educational, preschool and even home locations. In each of these locations, but especially home programs, the distance consultant can encounter very different education, training and experience backgrounds within Applied Behavior Analysis this articles talks about the importance of taking into account this part of the ecology designing a treatment plan. ********** Gillat & Sulzer-Azaroff (1994), Page, Iwata, & Reid (1982), speak of the importance of teaching those involved a program how to provide effective training, consultation, and supervision to those who will implement a program. In this example they are speaking of training the trainers which differs slightly from the relationship that we are speaking of currently. In distance relationships involving the education and rehabilitation system, there no guarantee, but generally individuals are available with an acceptable working knowledge about behavioral technology and its application. In addition there are usually senior staff members available, psychologists, social workers, or other specialists who can assist with training and supervision and add considerable assurance to the treatment effort. In an home program the relationship that we are speaking of much more direct, the distance consultant the trainer, consultant and supervisor to those who will implement the program. This relationship spread across a number of visits each year and may vary length, but generally a short six to eight hours every six to eight weeks and some cases even longer. The amount of supervision that the distance consultant may provide between visits varies but generally limited to videotapes, telephones and advice via data analysis and email. In this type of environment the importance of face-to-face time and instruction of the trainers at a premium. Additionally, an home program, where implementers are often implementing the treatment plan while there are considerable competing events, the distance consultant must take into account the ecology of treatment when training the implementer to deal with the complexities of the treatment plan. As Malouf & Schiller (1995) have pointed out there are events the ecology that are not conducive or may impeded or compete with standards of the treatment plan, like the other children the family, the phone, preparation of dinner and other events the ecology that are rarely considered a behavioral change plan. While it remains clear that practicing the application of treatment perhaps the most important use of the distance consultant's time, it becomes more a question of how to practice the application of the treatment plan. As Willems (1974) points out there are interdependencies among ecology, organism and behavior that leave the door open to widespread unintended effects. The possibility exists that the most highly advanced and technically perfect treatment plan may have contradictory effects without the consideration of the ecology. In fact it seems rare that a treatment plan developed for a school setting will be successful as is the home or other settings. The plan simply must be developed considering the ecology, which includes the implementers themselves, their willingness to be implement the treatment plan, their knowledge and experience and the likelihood of resistance (see Cautilli & Santilli Connor, 2000 for more information) to follow the treatment plan. The distance consultant working with an home program must maximize the amount of time that spent with a team working the child's milieu and instructing those who will implement the treatment plan while they are implementing the treatment plan. A simple day of explanation and training about the treatment plan may have little effect once the instructors are left to implement treatment in the real world alone. …

Health, Career Prospects, and Preferences of Senior Construction Workers

A cross-sectional questionnaire study was conducted among 637 male construction workers aged 40 years and older in order to gain information on senior construction worker's a) health and work ability, b) career prospects and preferences, and c) relationship between health, work ability, and career expectations. With a prevalence of 56%, musculoskeletal disorders were found to be the most common disease category. Advancing age was found to be associated with a deterioration in health and work ability status. Around 33% of the senior workers was not certain about continuation of their current job until retirement age. A strong association was found between health and work ability status and the expectations about the development of the career till retirement. Most preferred preventive measures of the workers themselves were all related to a decrease in their overall workload. Increasing attention for the vulnerable group of senior construction workers by means of occupational health care measures such as changes in the physical work content and environment, development of health promotion programs, and performance of periodic occupational health surveys is suggested.

Senior Workers in the Dutch Construction Industry: A Search for Age-Related Work and Health Issues

An increase in morbidity and disability rates in the Dutch construction industry is expected due to work force aging. In order to reduce these rates, an occupational health services instrument for senior construction workers will be developed to gather information on present problems in work and health, expectations for the future, and potential preventive policy measures. The aim of this study was to identify age-related work and health issues among construction workers that could be included in the new instrument. Questionnaire data on work and health from 1881 young (16-30 years) and 1946 old (45-64 years) construction workers were analyzed and a literature search was performed. Results show that health problems, in particular for musculoskeletal disorders, increase with advancing age, demonstrating the need for occupational health arrangements for the maintenance and improvement of work ability of senior construction workers.

The external efficiency of education in the manufacturing sector of Gaborone, Botswana

This paper presents data arising from a study of the labour force of the manufacturing sector of Gaborone, the capital city of the Republic of Botswana. Under the current National Development Plan, it is hoped that strong growth in this sector will ameliorate unemployment. The study found that the sector absorbs a considerable number of relatively poorly educated people, and low academic achievers from the high school system. There was found to be a high market premium on vocationally-oriented certificate-level post-school qualifications for junior secondary-educated workers. This did not apply to senior secondary-educated workers for whom, however, the acquisition of similarly career-oriented diploma and degree-level qualifications was found to exhibit similar benefits. These various post-school programmes, providers of which are often outside the country, may represent better public investments in `vocational education' than the current emphasis on expanding vocational centres and vocationalising the high school curriculum.

The retirement behavior of workers covered by union and nonunion pension plans

Previous authors have noted that there are significant differences between the provisions of union and nonunion pension plans. I present evidence that sheds light on two hypotheses. The first (Parsons, 1983) posits that union pensions should encourage earlier retirement because productivity falls as workers age, but union rules prohibit firms from lowering wages. The second (Freeman, 1985) argues that union pension plans reflect the preferences of older, more senior workers. I find some support for both hypotheses.

A Theory of on-the-Job Learning

In this paper, the author assumes that a junior worker learns on the job from senior workers. The worker's earnings are equal to his value of marginal product minus the tuition to his senior workers plus the teaching reward from his junior workers. The slope of the experience-earnings profile decreases with the employment growth rate. The earnings of an inexperienced worker of an unusually large cohort tend to be higher than the normal level. Finally, the author shows that his model generates an age-earnings profile which is increasing, concave in age, and declining near to retirement. Copyright 1997 by Economics Department of the University of Pennsylvania and the Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association.

The Older Worker in the Low Countries

Abstract. The paper deals with present, demographically‐based problems in highly‐developed labour markets, with special reference to the Belgian and Dutch experience. Both sluggish inflow by young cohorts and early retirement by senior workers are analysed. The first of these phenomena can be explained by the falling birth rate and increasing educational levels; the second phenomenon is the result of technological changes in the labour market and a social security system which offers attractive opportunities for early outflow. For companies, this trend translates into a loss of experience and a loss of corporate culture. On top of this, the social security system is coming under heavy pressure and scarcity symptoms are likely to develop on the supply side of the labour market.