EBA II

Project lead
Prof. Dr. Sebastian Brandl
Prof. Dr. Ingo Matuschek

Project duration
September 2021 – September 2023

Project partners
Prof. Dr. Lutz Bellmann & Dr. Ute Leber (Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (Institute for Employment Research))

• Brandl, Sebastian; Engin-Stock, Tülin; Leber, Ute; Matuschek, Ingo; Mayerböck, Astrid (2024): Alternde Belegschaften vor und während der Corona-Krise: Chancen der Beschäftigung Älterer im disruptiven Arbeitsmarkt. (Ageing workforces before and during the coronavirus crisis: Opportunities for older people in employment in a disruptive labour market) IAB Forschungsbericht (research report) 11/2024. Nürnberg: Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (Institute for Employment Research). PDF download

The German labour market sees itself as exposed in light of demographic change – the baby boomer are retiring, younger workers are desperately sought after. The National Employment Agency assumes that more than 400 000 immigrants are needed every year to cover the huge range of tasks in industry and services. At the same time, employees are working longer in comparison to the past, partly due to the changing opportunities connected to the age of retirement. This offers the chance to use the experience that older workers have and to utilise them as resources. There are, of course, requirements to be met and it is not possible for everyone, but it helps to fill some holes or to bridge gaps.

The question is to what extent the labour market, companies and employees are prepared for this change and can embrace it actively. Small and medium-sized companies face huge challenges: What does human resource planning look like mid-term? How can staff be retained, what type of work organisation, including prevention and health management, enables a long working life - even after retiring? What intercorporate opportunities are there? What effects do labour agreements specific to certain life situations have, and how is this topic addressed in company contracts? Studies are carried out on these topics by the University of Applied Labour Studies (HdBA) in conjunction with the Institute for Employment Research (IAB) (see research project EBA).

EBA II is the current project within this successful cooperation on this topic (full title: "Alternde Belegschaften in und nach der Coronakrise. Chancen der Beschäftigung Älterer in der Pandemie" (Ageing workers before and during the coronavirus crisis: Opportunities for older people in employment during the pandemic). A sector survey is carried out, similar to that of 2016 (EBA I: "Einstellung und (Weiter)Beschäftigung Älterer in der Chemieindustrie" (Employing and the (further) employment of older people in the chemical industry)). Sebastian Brandl and Ingo Matuschek coordinate the project for the University of Applied Labour Studies (HdBA), where Lutz Bellmann and Ute Leber from the IAB are also involved. The current survey was carried out in the spring of 2022 as an online survey for small and medium-sized companies in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry and will be evaluated from June 2022. To be able to compare it with the 2016 survey, a number of the same questions were used; due to the Corona crisis, the opportunity was also seized to ask questions on these topics. In this way, for example, the topic of working from home evolved as a subject not to be underestimated in terms of binding older workers to a company in a more flexible way than before. However, an investment in qualifications and technical equipment is also required.