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Value of work in the Netherlands: the role of the organisation In recent scientific and policy discourses, the centre of attention is increasingly geared towards the value and quality of work – as opposed to a prior occupation with the quantity of work. Whereas the dominant focus seems to be on (aspects of) the individual job, this contribution aims to embed the worker into the organisational context and highlight the (potential) role of organisations. We examine whether the value of work – beyond individual and job characteristics – is affected by (a) characteristics of the organisation, (b) mutual investments or the relation between employees and employers and (c) the extent to which employees can realise their values within an organisation. To that end, we analyse survey data from the Value of Work Monitor 2019. Our findings show that not only the characteristics of the employment relationship, but also the organisational context and realisation of workers' values have a significant effect on the evaluation of one's job. Amongst others, the composition of the workforce, autonomy and intensity, facilities for lifelong learning and workers' embeddedness in the organisation all have a significant effect on outcomes. We conclude that the discussion on value and quality of work deserves a more active role from the side of employers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines how the economic climate and policy changes at national level have been affecting organisational practices, aimed at the extension of working lives of older workers, over the last decade. We analyse case studies conducted among Dutch organisations. Our findings show that personnel policies are typically short-term oriented and vary in their existence and content congruous to the economic climate. Policy changes in retirement arrangements, and the debate about raising the official retirement age, have made both employees and employers realise that the extension of working lives has become an unavoidable fact, although both parties still seem intrinsically opposed to it. Changes to safety regulations and the increase in costs for employers if employees drop out of work due to ill health have led to an increasing focus on health-related measures in professions with intense physical work over the last decade. We conclude that, while national level policy changes in areas like health and safety do percolate down and begin to affect organisational practice, it is at the organisational level that they still need to be worked through. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine employers' perceptions of changes in the labour cost-productivity gap due to the ageing of the workforce, the effects of tenure wages and employment protection on the perceived gap, and whether a perceived labour cost-productivity gap affects employers' recruitment and retention behaviour towards older workers. Design/methodology/approach – The authors analyse surveys administered to employers in Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. Findings – Approximately half of employers associate the ageing of the personnel with a growing gap between labour costs and productivity. Both the presence of tenure wages and employment protection rules increase the probability of employers perceiving a widening labour cost-productivity gap due to the ageing of their workforce. A counterfactual shows that even when employment protection and tenure wage systems are abolished, 40 percent of employers expect a net cost increase. The expected labour cost-productivity gap negatively affects both recruitment and retention of older workers. Originality/value – In this paper, the wage-productivity gap is examined through the perceptions of employers using an international comparative survey. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose – Although policymakers have put great efforts into the promotion of older workers' labour force participation, quantitative empirical knowledge about employers' views towards extension of working lives is limited. The purpose of this paper is to improve the understanding of employers' attitudes and actions towards extension of working lives, by examining recruitment and retention behaviour towards older workers, employers' views on the consequences of an ageing workforce, organisational policies, and what governments can do to extend working lives. Design/methodology/approach – The authors analyse surveys administered to employers in Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, The Netherlands, Poland, Sweden and the UK in 2009. Findings – It is found that a minority of employers have applied measures to recruit or retain older workers, and employers rather retain than hire older workers. A considerable share of employers, albeit to different degrees per country, associate the ageing of their staff with a growing gap between labour costs and productivity. Employers expecting a larger gap do not apply more organisational measures to either increase productivity or adjust the cost-productivity balance. Employers may think the cost-productivity issue is partly for governments to solve; employers expecting a larger cost-productivity gap consider wage subsidies to be an effective measure to extend working lives. Originality/value – The paper addresses the employers' perspective, one that is often neglected compared to attitudes and behaviour of older workers themselves and research on institutional arrangements. This paper is also among the first to report on employers' policies and practices from a cross-national perspective. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]