AARP Best Employers for Workers Over 50 Program
By: Source: AARP.org Date Posted: August 2008
The AARP “Best Employers for Workers Over 50” is an annual recognition program that awards companies and organizations whose best practices and policies for addressing the issues affecting our aging labor force create roadmaps for the workplaces of tomorrow.
Now entering its ninth year, the program launched in 2001 with the name “AARP Best Companies for Workers Over 50.” In 2002, the name changed to AARP’s “Best Employers for Workers Over 50” to reflect AARP's interest in encouraging applications from a variety of employers from both the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. Moreover, in order to recognize the important role that government employers play in the U.S. workforce, AARP has now opened the program to public employers at the local, state, and federal levels. AARP recognizes that a growing number of U.S. employers are developing progressive policies and practices that are meeting the needs of an aging workforce. AARP seeks to share employers’ best practices with the business community at large and to promote employment opportunities for older workers.
Why Did AARP Launch the Program?
By 2016, one-third of the total U.S. workforce (or 33.5 percent) will be age 50 or older, up from 28 percent in 2007. As the proportion of younger workers continues to decline, attracting and retaining mature, experienced employees will become increasingly critical for employers who seek to retain their competitive edge in today's marketplace.
Who Is Eligible to Apply?
Any employer with at least 50 employees based in the United States is eligible to apply to the AARP “Best Employers for Workers Over 50” program. This includes for-profit companies, not-for-profit organizations, and government employers.
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