Professor writes book on older employee retention

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LEWISTOWN - There's a different outlook on today's baby boomers, thanks to a newly published book geared toward helping employers educate and retain their older employees.

The idea behind the book, "Working Longer: New Strategies for Managing, Training, and Retaining Older Employees", is to provide employers with a tool kit to manage and retain older workers, said Diane Spokus, co-author and assistant professor at the College of Health and Human Development at Penn State University.

"It seemed to be something that employers were looking for," she said.

Nowadays, adults, particularly in the baby boomer generation or those born between 1946 and 1964, are living longer and working longer, either because they have to or they want to, Spokus said.

The book focuses on ways to retain older workers, such as learning strategies to adapt the workplace to the individual, Spokus said.

Even when older workers retire, it still is important to keep a connection with them so knowledge isn't lost, she said.

Older employees have wisdom and experience, as well as a certain "know-how", which they have achieved in the workplace through active participation and common sense, Spokus said.

"Never burn bridges with employees," she said.

Spokus first had an interest in aging when she went to Jongkoping, Sweden, in 1994 to study comparative gerontology, she said.

At that time, Sweden had the largest elderly population, and Spokus wanted to see how old age in the work force was handled there.

Following her study in Sweden, Spokus coordinated a research study stationed at Penn State University with William Evans, Ph.D., at Tufts University. The study focused on helping 90 and 100-year-olds become more independent through increase of muscle mass to help improve balance and muscle coordination. There Spokus translated Evans' research into practice, she said.

The next big project Spokus participated in was the ACTIVE project, which began in 1997 and focused on the study of cognitive intervention. The study, also stationed at Penn State University, was targeted at helping those aged 65 and over who were at risk of losing their independence. The multi-site project, which involved other universities such as Johns Hopkins University, University of Michigan and University of Alabama, still is going on today, Spokus said.

Then, about two years ago, Spokus sent a proposal to the American Management Association to write "Working Longer."

The proposal was approved and she, along with William J. Rothwell, Ph.D., began writing. About a year later, Joel M. Reaser, Ph.D., and Harvey L. Sterns, Ph.D., joined the team, and book was published in 2008.

Its first public appearance in print was in early June at the American Society for Training and Development annual conference.

The co-authors of "Working Longer" include Rothwell, professor in work force education/training and development at Penn State University; Sterns, director of the Institute for Lifespan Development and Gerontology at the University of Akron in Ohio; and Reaser, senior vice president at the National Older Worker Career Center in Arlington, Va.

Copies of the book are available at the Penn State Bookstore, Barnes and Noble bookstores or through Amazon.com.

Spokus, a resident of Strodes Mills, also is a health educator for the Southcentral Pennsylvania Area Health Education Center. Her areas of research interests include health care work force shortage issues, older worker training, and older worker intent to continue work.

She received all three of her college degrees, a Bachelor of Sciences in human development and family studies; a Master of Science in adult education; and a doctorate in work force education, training and development, from Penn State University.

Spokus can be contacted at www.personal.psu.edu/dms201 or 994-1798.