Understanding Canadian ageing workers’ perceptions of workplace changes caused by COVID-19
Keywords:
ageing workforce; COVID-19; physical and cognitive change; discrimination; technological change; social and organizational supportAbstract
Today’s workers are remaining in the workforce longer than previous generations, resulting in a growing ageing workforce. However, the COVID-19 pandemic has made retaining older workers more complex. Ageing workers were particularly vulnerable to the virus, which heightened their fear of infection and reinforced employers’ negative perceptions about their performance due to health concerns. To better understand the challenges faced by ageing workers, we conducted a survey investigating their perceptions of workplace changes caused by COVID-19. The survey instrument was systematically developed through a comprehensive literature review to ensure the clarity and relevance of questions. Our findings suggest that both health conditions and organizational support deteriorated between the pre- and post-COVID-19 periods. Interestingly, the number of respondents who felt comfortable with technology increased after COVID-19, indicating a growing adaptability among Canadian ageing workers.
References
1. World Health Organization (WHO). Global excess deaths associated with COVID-19, January 2020-December 2021. 2022 Available online: https://www.who.int/data/stories/global-excess-deaths-associated-with-covid-19-january-2020-december-2021 (accessed on 10 September 2024).
2. Li Z, Farmanesh P, Kirikkaleli D, Itani R. A comparative analysis of COVID-19 and global financial crises: evidence from US economy. Economic Research-Ekonomska Istraživanja. 2021; 35(1): 2427-2441. doi: 10.1080/1331677x.2021.1952640
3. Katole A. Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on global economy. Journal of Family Medicine and Primary Care. 2023; 12(11): 2565-2568. doi: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_940_23
4. Martin FM, Sánchez JM, Wilkinson O. The economic impact of COVID-19 around the world. Review. 2023; 105(2). doi: 10.20955/r.105.74-88
5. Vyas L. “New normal” at work in a post-COVID world: Work-life balance and labor markets. Policy and Society. 2022; 41(1): 155-167. doi: 10.1093/polsoc/puab011
6. Barbabella F, Principi A, Lucantoni D, et al. Active aging policies targeting health and care during the of COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and thematic analysis of Italian national and regional policies. Journal of Applied Gerontology. 2023; 42(10): 2055-2065. doi: 10.1177/07334648231182243
7. Nagarajan NR, Sixsmith A. Policy initiatives to address the challenges of an older population in the workforce. Ageing International. 2023; 48(1): 41-77. doi: 10.1007/s12126-021-09442-w
8. Pit S, Fisk M, Freihaut W, et al. COVID-19 and the ageing workforce: Global perspectives on needs and solutions across 15 countries. International Journal for Equity in Health. 2021; 20(1): 221. doi: 10.1186/s12939-021-01552-w
9. Schuster B, Radpour S, Conway E, Ghilarducci T. No “great resignation” for older workers—Mass job loss drove the retirement surge. Available online: https://www.economicpolicyresearch.org/jobs-report/no-great-resignation-for-older-workers-mass-job-loss-drove-the-retirement-surge. 2022 (accessed on 1 October 2024).
10. Lagacé M, O’Sullivan T, Dangoisse P, et al. A case study on ageism during the COVID-19 pandemic. Available online: https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/9.910866/publication.html (accessed on 11 September 2024).
11. Scott K. Work in progress: Women in Canada’s changing post-pandemic labour market. Available online: https://childcarecanada.org/documents/research-policy-practice/24/05/work-progress-women-canada%E2%80%99s-changing-post-pandemic-labour (accessed on 1 October 2024).
12. International Labour Organization. ILO modelled estimates database, ILOSTAT. Available online: https://ilostat.ilo.org/data/ (accessed on 11 July 2024).
13. Lemieux T, Milligan K, Schirle T, Skuterud M. Initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Canadian labour market. Canadian Public Policy. 2020; 46(S1): S55-S65. doi: 10.3138/cpp.2020-049
14. Cui J. Older individuals’ labour force participation during COVID-19. The Journal of the Economics of Ageing. 2025; 30: 100545. doi: 10.1016/j.jeoa.2024.100545
15. Camille B. B.C. Call out to retired doctors: you’re needed if COVID-19 keeps spreading in Canada. Available online: https://toronto.citynews.ca/2020/03/14/call-out-to-retired-doctors-youre-needed-if-covid-19-keeps-spreading-in-canada/ (accessed on 24 May 2024).
16. Aisa R, Cabeza J, Martin J. Automation and aging: The impact on older workers in the workforce. The Journal of the Economics of Ageing. 2023; 26: 100476. doi: 10.1016/j.jeoa.2023.100476
17. Acemoglu D, Mühlbach NS, Scott AJ. The rise of age-friendly jobs. The Journal of the Economics of Ageing. 2022; 23: 100416. doi: 10.1016/j.jeoa.2022.100416
18. Tiwana MH, Smith J, Kirby M, Purewal S. Equity lens on Canada’s COVID-19 response: Review of the literature. International Journal of Health Policy and Management. 2024; 13(1): 1-9. doi: 10.34172/ijhpm.2024.8132
19. Hodder A. New technology, work and employment in the era of COVID‐19: Reflecting on legacies of research. New Technology, Work and Employment. 2020; 35(3): 262-275. doi: 10.1111/ntwe.12173
20. Ambrogio G, Filice L, Longo F, Padovano A. Workforce and supply chain disruption as a digital and technological innovation opportunity for resilient manufacturing systems in the COVID-19 pandemic. Computers & Industrial Engineering. 2022; 169: 108158. doi: 10.1016/j.cie.2022.108158
21. Clarke S, Fields A. Employment growth in Canada and the United States during the recovery from COVID-19. Economic and Social Reports. 2022; 2: 12. doi: 10.25318/36280001202201200001-eng
22. Baker SR, Farrokhnia RA, Meyer S, et al. How does household spending respond to an epidemic? Consumption during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. The Review of Asset Pricing Studies. 2020; 10(4): 834-862. doi: 10.1093/rapstu/raaa009
23. von Wachter T. Lost generations: Long‐term effects of the COVID‐19 crisis on job losers and labour market entrants, and options for policy*. Fiscal Studies. 2020; 41(3): 549-590. doi: 10.1111/1475-5890.12247
24. Côté D, Durant S, MacEachen E, et al. A rapid scoping review of COVID‐19 and vulnerable workers: Intersecting occupational and public health issues. American Journal of Industrial Medicine. 2021; 64(7): 551-566. doi: 10.1002/ajim.23256
25. De Vincenzi C, Pansini M, Ferrara B, et al. Consequences of COVID-19 on employees in remote working: Challenges, risks and opportunities an evidence-based literature review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(18): 11672. doi: 10.3390/ijerph191811672
26. Bank of Canada. COVID-19: Actions to support the economy and financial system. Available online: https://www.bankofcanada.ca/markets/market-operations-liquidity-provision/covid-19-actions-support-economy-financial-system/ (accessed on 24 May 2024).
27. Severino F, Cremona MA, Dadié É. COVID-19 Effects on the Canadian term structure of interest rates. SSRN Electronic Journal. 2021. doi: 10.2139/ssrn.3762628
28. Basso G, Boeri T, Caiumi A, Paccagnella M. (2022). Unsafe jobs, labour market risk and social protection. Economic Policy. 2022; 37(110): 229-267. doi: 10.1093/epolic/eiac004
29. Ayalon L, Chasteen A, Diehl M, et al. Aging in Times of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Avoiding Ageism and Fostering Intergenerational Solidarity. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B. 2021; 76(2): e49-e52. doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbaa051
30. Bae S, Choi M. Age and workplace ageism: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Gerontological Social Work. 2022; 66(6): 724-738. doi: 10.1080/01634372.2022.2161685
31. Klimova B, Valis M, Kuca K. Cognitive decline in normal aging and its prevention: A review on non-pharmacological lifestyle strategies. Clinical Interventions in Aging. 2017; 12: 903-910. doi: 10.2147/cia.s132963
32. Nagarajan NR, Wada M, Sixsmith A. Defining organizational contributions to sustaining an ageing workforce: A bibliometric review. European Journal of Ageing. 2019; 16(3): 337-361. doi: 10.1007/s10433-019-00499-w
33. Yang Y, Wang D, Hou W, Li H. Cognitive decline associated with aging. Advances in Experimental Medicine and Biology. 2023; 1419: 25-46. doi: 10.1007/978-981-99-1627-6_3
34. Wang Y, Shi W. Effects of age stereotypes of older workers on job performance and intergenerational knowledge transfer intention and mediating mechanisms. Behavioral Sciences. 2024; 14(6): 503. doi: 10.3390/bs14060503
35. Dowd JB, Andriano L, Brazel DM, et al. Demographic science aids in understanding the spread and fatality rates of COVID-19. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2020; 117(18): 9696-9698. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2004911117
36. Lebrasseur A, Fortin-Bédard N, Lettre J, et al. Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on older adults: Rapid review. JMIR Aging. 2021; 4(2): e26474. doi: 10.2196/26474
37. d’Errico A, Ardito C, Leombruni R, et al. Working conditions and health among Italian ageing workers. Social Indicators Research. 2022; 162: 1043-1067. doi: 10.1007/s11205-021-02862-w
38. Losada-Baltar A, Jiménez-Gonzalo L, Gallego-Alberto L, et al. “We are staying at home.” Association of self-perceptions of aging, personal and family resources, and loneliness with psychological distress during the lock-down period of COVID-19. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B. 2021; 76(2): e10-e16. doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbaa048
39. Czaja SJ, Sharit J. Workplace technologies and older workers: Opportunities and challenges. The Gerontologist. 2016; 56(Suppl_3): 208-208. doi: 10.1093/geront/gnw162.818
40. Keohane S, Swarbrick C, Helal S. Barriers and facilitators to technology among older adults during COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review using thematic analysis. In: Gao Q, Zhou J (editors). Human Aspects of IT for the Aged Population. Design, Interaction, and Technology Acceptance, Proceedings of the 8th International Conference; 26 June–1 July 2022. Springer, Cham; 2022. doi: 10.1007/978-3-031-05581-2_33
41. Battisti E, Alfiero S, Leonidou E. Remote working and digital transformation during the COVID-19 pandemic: Economic–financial impacts and psychological drivers for employees. Journal of Business Research. 2022; 150: 38-50. doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.06.010
42. de Lucas Ancillo A, Gavrila Gavrila S, del Val Núñez MT. Workplace change within the COVID-19 context: The new (next) normal. Technological Forecasting and Social Change. 2023; 194: 122673. doi: 10.1016/j.techfore.2023.122673
43. Alcover CM, Guglielmi D, Depolo M, et al. “Aging-and-tech job vulnerability”: A proposed framework on the dual impact of aging and AI, robotics, and automation among older workers. Organizational Psychology Review. 2021; 11(2): 175-201.doi: 10.1177/2041386621992105
44. Viviani CA, Bravo G, Lavallière M, et al. Productivity in older versus younger workers: A systematic literature review. Work. 2021; 68(3): 577-618. doi: 10.3233/wor-203396
45. Statistics Canada (SC). Automation, workers, and COVID-19. Available online: https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2020001/article/00033-eng.htm (accessed on 1 October 2024).
46. Suh JY. Age discrimination in the workplace hurts us all. Nature Aging. 2021; 1(2): 147. doi: 10.1038/s43587-020-00023-1
47. Roscigno VJ, Mong S, Byron R, Tester G. Age discrimination, social closure and employment. Social Forces. 2007; 86(1): 313-334. doi: 10.1353/sof.2007.0109
48. Marchiondo LA, Gonzales E, Williams LJ. Trajectories of perceived workplace age discrimination and long-term associations with mental, self-rated, and occupational health. The Journals of Gerontology: Series B. 2019; 74(4): 655-663. doi: 10.1093/geronb/gbx095
49. Reuschl AJ, Deist MK, Maalaoui A. Digital transformation during a pandemic: Stretching the organizational elasticity. Journal of Business Research. 2022; 144: 1320-1332. doi: 10.1016/j.jbusres.2022.01.088
50. Hollis-Sawyer L. Differential treatment of older workers due to COVID-19: Potential for ageism and age discrimination at work. Innovation in Aging. 2021; 5(Supplement_1): 441-441. doi: 10.1093/geroni/igab046.1711
51. Raab R. Workplace perception and job satisfaction of older workers. Journal of Happiness Studies. 2019; 21(3): 943-963. doi: 10.1007/s10902-019-00109-7
52. Butrica B. Workforce programs serving older workers and other populations with employment barriers. Available online: https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/ETA/publications/ETAOP2022-32_Older_Workers_Lit-Review%209.17.22_FINALREPORT_508_compliant.pdf (ac cessed on 24 May 2024).
53. AARP International. Retaining older workers through the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond: A global perspective. Available online: https://www.aarpinternational.org/file%20library/future%20of%20work/aarpglobalinsights_retainingworkers_modulei_issuebrief.doi.10.26419-2fres.00553.001.pdf (accessed on 2 May 2024).
54. Farr-Wharton B, Bentley T, Onnis L, et al. Older worker-orientated human resource practices, wellbeing and leave intentions: A conservation of resources approach for ageing workforces. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2023; 20(3): 2725. doi: 10.3390/ijerph20032725
55. D’Angelo S, Bloom I, Ntani G, Walker-Bone K. Why did middle-aged and older people retire since the first COVID-19 lockdown? A qualitative study of participants from the Health and Employment After Fifty study. BMC Public Health. 2024; 24(1): 103. doi: 10.1186/s12889-023-17548-w
56. Darioly A, Riggio RE. Nepotism in the hiring of leaders. Swiss Journal of Psychology. 2014; 73(4): 243-248. doi: 10.1024/1421-0185/a000143
57. Tabanao A. What our aging workforce means for the labor market. Available online: https://www.benefitsandpensionsmonitor.com/pensions/retirement-planning/what-our-aging-workforce-means-for-the-labor-market/382353 (accessed on 11 September 2024).
58. MacEwen A. Working after age 65. What is at stake?. Available online: https://policyalternatives.ca/publications/reports/working-after-age-65 (accessed on 11 September 2024).
59. Wister A, Speechley M. COVID-19: Pandemic risk, resilience and possibilities for aging research. Canadian Journal on Aging/La Revue canadienne du vieillissement. 2020; 39(3): 344-347. doi: 10.1017/s0714980820000215
60. Kallestrup-Lamb M, Marin AOK, Menon S, Søgaard J. Aging populations and expenditures on health. The Journal of the Economics of Ageing. 2024; 29: 100518. doi: 10.1016/j.jeoa.2024.100518
61. Nova Scotia Centre on Aging. Older worker employment and labour force participation—Phase 2. Available online: https://novascotia.ca/shift/Older-Worker-Employment-and-Labour-Force-Participation-Phase-2.pdf (accessed on 11 September 2024).
62. Government of Canada. Older workers: Exploring and addressing the stereotypes. Available online: https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/corporate/seniors-forum-federal-provincial-territorial/reports/older-worker-exploring-addressing-stereotypes.html (accessed on 11 September 2024).
63. Boehm SA, Baumgaertner MK, Dwertmann DJG, Kunze F. Age diversity and its performance implications—Analysing a major future workforce trend. In: Boppel M, Boehm S, Kunisch S (editors). From Grey to Silver. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg; 2011. pp. 121-141.
64. Axelrad H, Luski I, Miki M. Difficulties of integrating older workers into the labor market: Exploring the Israeli labor market. International Journal of Social Economics. 2013; 40(12): 1058-1076. doi: 10.1108/ijse-12-2011-0098
65. Schellaert M, Derous E. Retirement decisions in times of COVID-19: The role of telework, ICT-related strain and social support on older workers’ intentions to continue working. Personnel Review. 2024; 53(8): 1950-1973. doi: 10.1108/pr-04-2023-0286
66. Mahboubi P, Robson WBP. Inflated expectations: More immigrants can’t solve Canada’s aging problem on their own. Available online: https://www.cdhowe.org/public-policy-research/inflated-expectations-more-immigrants-can%E2%80%99t-solve-canada%E2%80%99s-aging-problem-their-own (accessed on 9 September 2024).
67. de Beer P. Labour migration as a solution to an ageing population? European View. 2024; 23(1): 47-54. doi: 10.1177/17816858241240595
68. Van Dalen HP, Henkens K, Schippers J. Productivity of older workers: Perceptions of employers and employees. Population and Development Review. 2010; 36(2): 309-330. doi: 10.1111/j.1728-4457.2010.00331.x
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Author(s)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
