For Immediate Release
Contact: AARP Media Relations, 202-434-2560
AARP International ‘Best Employers for Workers Over 50 Award’ Recognizes 15 Winners from Eight Countries in 2011
WASHINGTON – In recognition of growing international attention to the implications of an aging workforce, AARP today announced the 15 winners of the 2011 AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50 Award - International. The award, designed to promote innovative human resource and workforce practices around the world, recognized winners from Australia, Austria, Germany, Japan, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Singapore and the United Kingdom.
“Our winners have demonstrated outstanding vision and commitment in building a forward-looking workplace” said AARP Senior Vice President Edward Newburn. “Creating and sustaining positive workplace policies for workers over 50 will help them attract and retain employees of all ages."
AARP selected the following 15 companies and organizations for having the most positive workplace policies for their older workers:
* BMW Group (Germany)
* Bundesagentur für Arbeit (Germany)
* Centrica plc (United Kingdom)
* Daikin Industries Ltd. (Japan)
* DB Services (Germany)
* DSW21 (Germany)
* Elkerliek Hospital (Netherlands)
* Jena-Optronik GmbH (Germany)
* Lam Soon Edible Oils Sdn Bhd (Malaysia)
* Marks and Spencer plc (United Kingdom)
* National Australia Bank (Australia)
* National Environment Agency (Singapore)
* Raffles Institution (Singapore)
* Salzburg AG für Energie, Verkehr und Telekommunikation (Austria)
* The Co-operative Group (United Kingdom)
AARP teamed with a network of international collaborating organizations with expertise on age and employment issues to promote the international award program, including 50&Piú (Italy); BAGSO (Germany); CARP (Canada); Council for Third Age (Singapore); DDN – The Demography Network (Germany); Gerontology Institute at Technische Universität Dortmund (Germany); PGGM (Netherlands); and TAEN – The Age and Employment Network (United Kingdom).
The 2011 AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50 Award - International winners, and the recipients of the separate 2011 AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50 Award (U.S. program) will be honored at a dinner in Chicago, Ill., on September 13. A conference on the changing demographics of the global workforce will be held in connection with the program on September 14.
The AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50 Award - International is open to all non-U.S.-based employers, as well as foreign subsidiaries of U.S.-based companies. Candidates are vetted to ensure that practices meet the needs of mature workers. Key areas of consideration include: recruiting practices; opportunities for training, education and career development; workplace accommodations; alternative work options, such as flexible scheduling, job sharing, and phased retirement; employee health and retirement benefits; and retiree relations.
For more information about the AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50 Award - International, please visit: http://www.aarpinternational.org/bestemployers.
About AARP
AARP is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization with a membership that helps people 50+ have independence, choice and control in ways that are beneficial and affordable to them and society as a whole. AARP does not endorse candidates for public office or make contributions to either political campaigns or candidates. We produce AARP The Magazine, the definitive voice for 50+ Americans and the world's largest-circulation magazine with over 35.1 million readers; AARP Bulletin, the go-to news source for AARP's millions of members and Americans 50+; AARP VIVA, the only bilingual U.S. publication dedicated exclusively to the 50+ Hispanic community; and our website, AARP.org. AARP Foundation is an affiliated charity that provides security, protection, and empowerment to older persons in need with support from thousands of volunteers, donors, and sponsors. We have staffed offices in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
