Retaining an age-diverse workforce through HRM: The mediation of work engagement and affective commitment

Abstract

An aging population and an increasingly age-diverse workforce exemplify the complex challenge that age represents for most managers today. For that reason, research has shown the importance of designing and implementing human resources (HR) practices that meet age-related differences in workers’ motives and needs. Drawing on signaling and social exchange theories, the current study investigated a first stage moderated parallel multiple mediation model. We examined the mediating roles of work engagement and affective commitment in the relationship between age-diversity practices and turnover intention, as well as the moderating role of work centrality in these mediated relationships. Using a sample of 802 Portuguese workers, the study supported the parallel multiple mediation hypotheses. Further, the findings revealed that work centrality moderated the relationship between age-diversity practices and turnover intention via work engagement, but not via affective commitment. Age-diversity practices may motivate those workers who place less importance on work to be more engaged, which, in turn, reduces their intentions to leave the organization. Moreover, all workers, regardless of the importance that work plays in their life, are more emotionally attached to the organization and more willing to stay when there are age-diversity practices. Thus, to retain a healthy and productive age-diverse workforce, organizations should implement age-diversity practices. Empirical and practical implications are discussed.

The multifaceted influence of age on employee work engagement: Examining the interactive effects of chronological age, relational age, and perceived age-related treatment

“…Or they can introduce age-inclusive HR practices aimed at increasing the perceptions of a positive age-related treatment (e.g. training for an age-diverse work environment, including programs which highlight the strengths of each age cohort in the workplace) (Pahos et al, 2021; Sousa et al, 2021). Organizations should encourage managers to engage and retain younger workers, providing training and networking opportunities (Fasbender et al, 2020) or enhancing their leisure time (Twenge et al, 2010).…”

Psychological Capital and Work Engagement: The Moderating Role of Age Diversity

“…In this study, the most research participants is maintenance stage (maintenance stage) aged 41 to 60 years who most of them have position above supervisor. Sousa et al, (2020) in her research explains that age diversity can be positively correlated with work engagement with age diversity practices in maint aining a healthy and productive workforce, but Sousa also writes that ageing populations and an increasingly ageing workforce can be complex challenges. The design and application of human resources practices in the maintenance stage must be able to meet t he motives and needs of workers based on age categories in moderating psychological capital to work engagement.…”

A influência das práticas de diversidade etária no bem-estar e na intenção de saída dos trabalhadores: O papel do contrato psicológico relacional

“…A implementação destas práticas deve incluir as diversas dimensões da gestão de recursos humanos de forma a criar um ambiente de trabalho onde todos se sentem integrados, incluindo o recrutamento e seleção, o desenvolvimento e promoção, a avaliação de desempenho, o ajustamento do trabalho ao indivíduo e o reconhecimento (Boehm et al, 2014;. Por exemplo, as práticas de diversidade etária permitem, através da sua flexibilidade, responder aos objetivos de um trabalhador com 55 anos que está motivado para continuar a desenvolver as suas competências com o objetivo de ser promovido e, simultaneamente, às preocupações generativas de um trabalhador com a mesma idade que preferiria ser mentor dos recém-chegados à organização (Sousa et al, 2021). Assim, estas práticas podem beneficiar a capacidade para o trabalho de indivíduos de diferentes idades (Rudolph & Zacher, 2021), assim como promover a transferência de conhecimento nas organizações (Burmeister et al, 2018).…”