The report, Rewriting the Script of Our Age: How HR Can Lead a Culture of Longevity and Inclusion, urges HR professionals to lead the redesign of work for a “100-year life”, warning that the UK’s outdated “educate, work retire” model is no longer sustainable.
Writers of the report estimate that if the employment rate of people aged 50 to 64 matched that of younger workers, the UK economy could gain more than £88bn.
The report’s authors call for age inclusion to be embedded in recruitment, learning, wellbeing and leadership strategies, rather than being treated as a compliance issue.
Representatives of Age Irrelevance also warn that artificial intelligence could reinforce age bias in hiring, recommending annual AI bias audits and an 11-point longevity plan to promote intergenerational collaboration, midlife reskilling and flexible later-life careers.
Welcoming the report, Paul Sesay, CEO and founder of DEI network Inclusive Companies said: “We must watch for AI and human bias in recruitment and value experience, skills, mentoring and leadership over age.”
He explained that the wording, tone and placement of job adverts are crucial, and advised employers not to rely solely on digital platforms, as some older applicants may be less comfortable applying online.
“HR needs support to review and refresh policies to be age-inclusive, involving older colleagues and avoiding assumptions by younger managers,” he added. Employers should ask older workers what helps them perform at their best, from flexible working hours and healthcare to upskilling and social events.
Sarah Taylor Phillips, founder of career and talent planning business Career Voyage, said organisations need to rethink how they design roles to better support experienced talent and intergenerational collaboration.
Taylor Phillips said: “You can have a career and a life; they’re not mutually exclusive, and 50-plus talent want to live and work happily ever after.”
The 11-point longevity plan calls on organisations to assess demographic risks through workforce data, include age considerations in business risk registers, and redesign work and reward systems to suit multi-generational teams.
The plan also urges HR to create intergenerational teams, tailor health and wellbeing support to different life stages, and introduce “longevity listening groups” to capture employee feedback across age ranges.
Other measures include ensuring equal access to training for older workers, addressing bias in leadership and recruitment, supporting phased retirement options, and conducting annual AI bias audits to prevent age-based discrimination in hiring.
Taylor Phillips encouraged employers to consider cross-generational job sharing, pairing employees with complementary skills and supported by AI to manage handovers, documentation and administration.
“Intergenerational job sharing keeps parents in the workforce and stops women over 50 from walking,” she explained. Job sharing is a great way to bring in experienced individuals who don’t fit into a standard job box, Taylor Phillips said.
Sesay said employers and HR teams should allocate additional time and resources for returner programmes, including refresher training and buddy schemes, to help new hires regain confidence and integrate smoothly into the workplace.
Lucy Standing, founder of Brave Starts, a career consultancy for people aged 50 and over, “We see daily how midlife talent is undervalued, not because of capability, but because systems and mindsets remain tied to outdated career models.”
She added that the Age Irrelevance report is a welcome step in helping employers see both the economic and human value of rethinking work and progression.
Standing explained that irony lies in how older workers are often labelled as resistant to change, when in fact they are the generation that has consistently adapted throughout their careers. “It’s organisations that are lagging behind,” she added.
The report draws on national and international data from 2019 to 2025, combining analysis of ONS, OECD, CIPD, and ILC reports with evidence from the UK Parliament’s Women and Equalities Committee. Key sources include the OECD Employment Outlook 2025, CIPD’s Ageing Gracefully report (2024), and the ILC Better Lives Index (2025).
