Where is the difficulty of re-employment for 60-year-old people?

"I am still capable when I am old, but why don't companies want me?" On February 23rd, a news item "Young people find it difficult to find a job: 58-year-old Tsinghua graduated with more than 5,000 yuan and couldn't find a job" appeared on the hot search, and the topic of employment for the elderly group once again triggered a heated discussion. Under the background of China's "gradual delayed retirement" policy, the job-seeking needs of younger elderly groups have been widely concerned by the outside world.

1 "I can still work" According to the National Bureau of Statistics, in 2022, the population aged 60 and over in China was 280 million, accounting for 19.8%. Some population experts pointed out that from the perspective of population structure, the next 30 years will be a period of young aging, the number of young people aged 60-69 will increase substantially, and the process of population aging in China will be significantly accelerated.

According to the survey data of Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences, 62. 1% of young and old people aged 60-65 have the intention of re-employment, and 72.7% of "quasi-old people" aged 55-59 have the intention of re-employment after retirement. These data reflect that the elderly have a strong desire for re-employment. On August 26th, 2022, the "China Senior Talent Network" sponsored by the Senior Talent Information Center of China Association for the Aged was launched only two days ago, and more than 5,000 middle-aged and elderly job seekers and 100 recruitment enterprises have signed up.

For some young old people, when they face retirement, they will have a sense of "inadaptability" in which the pace of life is broken. Even in China's traditional concept, retired people should be willing to live a leisurely life of "children and grandchildren" and "planting flowers and raising fish" and draw a clear line with the workplace. But in fact, with the extension of life expectancy and the improvement of physical fitness of China residents, many elderly people still have the plan and ability to re-employment.

Some of them feel that their body and energy can still fight a "World War II" in the workplace; Some people are eager to smooth out this sense of separation in the transition period between workplace and retirement; There are also some people who have the confidence and sharpness of "working body" and want to redefine their self-worth in the world of young people. ...

Uncle Wang, aged 58, graduated from Tsinghua University. Before retiring, he worked as a project manager in a foreign-funded enterprise. High education and enough work experience are the hard requirements for many enterprises to recruit talents, but Uncle Wang's road to "re-employment" is full of thorns.

In an interview with beijing business today Today, Uncle Wang said that he had been posting resumes around the website to find a job since last August, and it has been nearly half a year now, but almost no company has contacted him during this period. "There are very few recruitment companies on the website, and there are even fewer companies that are professional with me."

Uncle Wang said that in fact, his current professional requirements are not high, and he expects to earn more than 5,000 yuan. "My family is more supportive of my job search and I am in good health. I have the energy to work five days a week. I have no requirements for specific industries and company size. "

"I hope to find a management post, a consultant post, a training tutor post, etc., but I am not in a hurry to find a job. If I can't find a job, I will drink tea at home, exercise and exercise, and travel again when I have time. " Uncle Wang has made plans for his future retirement.

There are fewer enterprises that recruit the elderly, and there are fewer suitable jobs. These difficulties have blocked the way for the elderly group represented by Uncle Wang to lead to the world of "re-employment".

On February 22nd, beijing business today Today reporter's survey found that most recruitment platforms have not yet set up a special area for the elderly, and the elderly still use offline and friend introduction as the main channels in job hunting. After clicking on "Job Recruitment" on China Senior Talents Online, the life service jobs that frequently appear on the homepage of the recruitment page are basically some, such as "hotel room foreman", "parking attendant", "cleaner" and "security guard", and the overall number of jobs suitable for the job-seeking needs of the elderly with high education is still small.

The reality is that, in addition to most highly educated young people like Uncle Wang, some young people with low or no education are in trouble on the road of "re-employment". Even if they find the right jobs, they are facing new problems.

2 "Looking for a job and making more money" Wang (pseudonym), 57, recalled that he had been "spinning tirelessly like a top" for 30 years.

After being laid off from Shanghai People's Tool Factory, 27-year-old Wang worked as a salesman, kindergarten nurse and cleaner because of her low education ... She is very busy every day, and sometimes even works two jobs at the same time. Wang's daily work, most of the time, is "starting at 4 am and getting home at 4: 30 pm", which goes on and on.

Aunt Shanghai, who is the same age as Wang, usually leads a happy life of traveling, dancing and playing cards. But Wang's life is immersed in all kinds of trivial things at work, carefully calculating the nodes where everything ends.

In order to save money, Wang almost never takes the subway. Walking by bus is the "optimal solution" she found on her way to work: first, transfer to bus 929, take two buses to work, then start cleaning, and then walk 300 meters to another company at about 6: 30 to do her second cleaning. On the way, I had to take some time out to help cook in the company canteen.

Wang's husband used to be a boiler worker in a steel plant. After he retired from illness in 2009, the pressure to support his family shifted to her. Although they were born and raised in Shanghai, the couple still didn't have their own house when they were in their 60s. In 2020, Wang's family applied for a set of affordable housing. They are looking for relatives and friends to make a patchwork, and they still bear nearly 6.5438+0 million foreign debts. Therefore, even knowing that she can receive a pension of more than 4,000 yuan every month after retirement, Wang dare not rest.

There are many young people, Rainbow Li Qin, who firmly grasp the red line of the legal retirement age and struggle on the road of "finding a job and earning more money". Because according to the provisions of China's labor law, once the legal retirement age is exceeded, it is not within the scope of application of the Labor Contract Law, and the re-employed workers after retirement can only sign labor contracts with enterprises.

There is a word difference between labor and service, but the protection is far from it. Legally speaking, only by signing a labor contract can labor relations be established. Without labor relations, there is no need to pay five insurances and one gold, so there is no industrial injury insurance and no dismissal compensation, which seems to have entered a "vacuum zone" for the protection of rights and interests.

Tang Dan, director of the Beijing Association of Gerontology and Geriatrics and a well-known scholar in the field of gerontology, once mentioned that some enterprises are willing to hire retired middle-aged and elderly people because they are "more cost-effective"-they don't need to pay five insurances and one gold, and they can accept lower wages. What's more, Rainbow Li Qin, an elderly person with a low education, will voluntarily accept a lower salary when looking for a job because of his age, even if he has not reached the statutory retirement age.

Invisibly, "I am old" seems to be the default hidden disadvantage of both enterprises and job seekers.

In 2022, the Party's Report to the 20th CPC National Congress proposed "gradually delaying the legal retirement age". Although the specific implementation time is not yet clear, judging from a series of signals, it is only a matter of time before the implementation of the delayed retirement policy in the future. Under such a policy background, how to build a bridge between the young and difficult old people and their counterparts? How to promote flexible employment of "silver-haired people"

3 How to help realize the Party's "active ageing" Report to the 20th CPC National Congress pointed out that it is necessary to implement a national strategy to actively respond to the aging population. On February 20, 2023, Workers Daily published a document saying that the whole society has fully realized that the elderly group contains rich potential and broad market, and promoting the re-employment of younger elderly people has gradually changed from concept to practical exploration.

China Senior Talent Network, officially launched in August 2022, has been actively exploring senior human resources. Wang Jianjun, executive deputy director of the National Office for Ageing and president of the China Association for Ageing, said, "China Senior Talents Network aims to broaden channels and build a platform for the re-employment of the elderly, accelerate the gathering of senior talents, build a think tank for the elderly and promote the development of human resources for the elderly. It is of great significance to actively respond to the aging population and serve the high-quality development of the economy and society. "

Perfecting the employment system for young and elderly people is related to the sense of acquisition of the elderly and the realization of "silver hair bonus", which is a brand-new field to be explored urgently.

Zhang Libin, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Labor and Social Security, found that "a considerable proportion of retired old people need employment, both subjectively and objectively". According to the data of the seventh national census in 2020, 55.83% of the people aged 60-69 in China are young and old. Most of these young elderly people have the advantages of knowledge, experience and skills, and their physical condition is acceptable, so they have the space and potential to exert their "waste heat".

Mao, an associate professor at capital university of economics and business Institute of Labor Economics and a researcher at China Employment Research Institute of China Renmin University, mentioned in an interview with China Economic Times reporter that younger elderly people have rich work experience advantages, and promoting their flexible employment is conducive to enriching the labor supply in the whole market. However, there are still some problems in the concrete implementation. "For example, there is information asymmetry between the younger elderly who have the willingness to work and the units or individuals who have employment needs, and the employment market of the younger elderly is unbalanced, which may be in industries, occupations, cities and individuals.

Mao Feiyu suggested that it is necessary to improve the relevant legal system of flexible employment for younger elderly people, reduce the age discrimination of employers and improve the fairness of employment opportunities. At the same time, improve the flexible employment form, contract signing, working hours, social security and other related policies for the younger elderly. In addition, it is necessary to strengthen vocational training, improve the digital literacy of younger elderly people, and build an information platform for flexible employment of younger elderly people.

At present, relevant systems and regulations are being gradually improved. For example, Zhejiang Province issued "Guiding Opinions on Trial Participation in Work-related Injury Insurance for Students in Vocational and Technical Schools and Persons Over the Statutory Retirement Age", gradually exploring and expanding the coverage of the work-related injury insurance system, and paying attention to the rights and interests of older workers. In practice, China is constantly exploring new ideas and new prospects for the employment of young and old people. In the future, it is still necessary to carry out all-round scientific layout and long-term planning in combination with reality.

"Don't say that Sang Yu is late, because it is still foggy." Respecting their needs is also respecting us in the future.