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Looking for Opportunities for Employees

How you can help

Volunteer on One of Our Programmes

Older people attending 'getting started' programme with Microsoft staff

Join us in battling digital exclusion with our 'Getting Started ' programme, an exciting collaboration with compassionate companies. Age Action's initiative gives free, one-on-one digital literacy training, helping older people confidently use the internet or their smart devices. Conducted at our partnering company's offices, this five-week course relies on dedicated company employees acting as volunteer tutors. If your organisation is eager to contribute and host a 'Getting Started' course, we're just an email away at csr@ageaction.ie. Your involvement can make a big difference! 

Organise an Employee Fundraising Event

Fostering team spirit while supporting a noble cause? It's a win-win situation! Consider organising a team-building social event for Age Action as a fulfilling way to meet your Corporate Social Responsibility targets and staff volunteering commitments. We'll supply all the promotional essentials such as posters, collection boxes, and sponsorship cards. Your event can be anything from:

  • A sponsored walk or run 
  • An enjoyable coffee morning
  • An exciting quiz
  • A thrilling race night
  • A casual friday
  • An event of your choosing

You can even participate in one of Age Action's many engaging fundraising events. This unique approach not only promotes camaraderie among your staff but also contributes significantly to Age Action's mission. Contact our team on fundraising@ageaction.ie to get more inspiration for your corporate social event and make a difference in the lives of older people in our community. Encourage team building, fulfil CSR goals, and champion Age Action - all in one go!

Garden Blitz

Volunteers tending to an older person's garden

Unleash the power of your corporate team and help transform the gardens of our older people with Age Action’s Garden Blitz. This one-day event invites volunteers nationwide to tend to gardens that need a little care. We see high interest from corporations for this unique initiative, and it's a fantastic opportunity for companies in Ireland looking to fulfil their Corporate Social Responsibility. By participating in our Garden Blitz, your team can contribute hands-on support to those who need it most, making a visible difference in their lives. If you're keen to get your company involved in this socially rewarding event, reach out to us at csr@ageaction.ie. Together, we can turn green fingers into smiles!

Turn Your Volunteering Hours into Donations

Are you aware that your volunteer hours can transform into valuable donations? Many companies in Ireland have a unique policy where your volunteering time can be translated into financial contributions to Age Action. This remarkable initiative not only helps you fulfill your volunteering passion but also supports us in empowering older individuals in our community. Check with your employer to see if this is a possibility they can accommodate

Once Off Volunteering Opportunities

Are you a corporate group in Ireland seeking unique volunteering opportunities? Age Action might just have what you're looking for. From time to time, we present one-off volunteering opportunities perfectly suited for corporate teams. 

Taking part in these activities not only enriches your team's experience but also enhances your corporate profile, showcasing your commitment to giving back to the community. If this resonates with your organisation's values and you're keen to register your interest, reach out to us at csr@ageaction.ie. With Age Action, make your volunteering hours count and contribute to a meaningful cause.

The new Bill is an inadequate response to the growing demand for the abolition of mandatory retirement.

According to Dr Nat O’Connor, Age Action’s Senior Policy Adviser: “Age Action strongly opposes the revival of the Employment (Restriction of Certain Mandatory Retirement Ages). Bill 2024, which is an inadequate response to the growing demand for the abolition of mandatory retirement.”

“Across political parties, in unions and among older persons, we see support for ending the practice of forcing people out of work before they are ready, but the proposed Bill makes no meaningful progress toward that end. The aim set out in its title, to restrict certain mandatory retirement ages, betrays its lack of ambition. All it provides for is the establishment of a complex, formal procedure so that employees can make a written request to stay on past their contractual retirement age; a request which can still be denied by their employer. This is the sole ‘restriction’ the Bill would impose on mandatory retirement.”

“This is a weak and ineffective Bill which is unlikely to help most employees who are forced out of work against their will for the offence of reaching a certain birthday. There is no reason for such timid action when we have seen other countries like Canada, New Zealand, Australia, the UK, and the United States abolish mandatory retirement entirely, in some cases decades ago. These countries have continued to enjoy well-functioning and productive labour markets and workplaces, showing that there is no foundation for the fears expressed by people who want to keep mandatory retirement.”

“Mandatory retirement is age discrimination. If the State allows a form of discrimination to be practiced, it must set out clear justifications for the practice. However, the popular arguments in favour of mandatory retirement are all myths. There is no evidence that older persons are less able to contribute to a workplace, or that they cost more than they contribute, or that they prevent younger workers from gaining employment. In fact, research has demonstrated the many benefits older workers bring to workplaces, including institutional experience, mentoring, and soft skills like better stress management.”

“Mandatory retirement is based on gross and insulting stereotypes about ageing. It is experienced by workers as a humiliating and dehumanizing injustice. It takes away our autonomy and our control over how and when we retire, which is a major life event. People who had no choice in retiring report poorer mental health, life satisfaction, health status, dietary habits, marital satisfaction, self-efficacy, and income adequacy, even years into their retirement.”

Dr. O’Connor concluded: “The proposed Bill is an incomplete and inadequate response to the problem of mandatory retirement, and by virtue of its incompleteness, reinforces and legitimises the dangerous ageism on which mandatory retirement is founded. We want our new government to take strong and decisive action, rather than tinkering around the edges of a serious problem. The Bill needs to be abandoned in favour of legislation that really helps the workers who wish to remain in work for longer.”

Churn:
It is not reasonable to suggest that the abolition of mandatory retirement would create a large problem for companies, when the scale of churn in the labour market is already far higher. The Irish labour market experienced 12.8% churn in quarter 3 of 2024, meaning that 1 in 8 jobs were created, abolished or vacated during this period, which was 365,750 jobs (Central Statistics Office 2024).

Compared to this level of hiring and resignations, managing the relatively small number of older workers who may seek to work longer or whose productivity may fall in older age is a much smaller human resources management issue for companies.

CSO (2024) Labour Market Churn Q3 2024 https://www.cso.ie/en/releasesandpublications/fp/fp-lmc/labourmarketchurnq32024/

Age Action’s detailed policy paper outlining the case against mandatory retirement can be accessed here: https://www.ageaction.ie/sites/default/files/age_action_paper_abolish_mandatory_retirement.pdf

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