Contracting
I read recently that the under-30s are regarded as gold dust in contracting. So, if you are over 50, you could be forgiven for feeling sidelined. But not all contractors take on older people because they are taking what they can get. As Bill Chitty, manager of Hays Montrose鈥檚 Ilford office, says: 鈥淵our small to medium-sized regional contractor is crying out for mature candidates who have a good 10 years to give to the industry. They have a wealth of experience, they get the job done well and there is less danger of 鈥榡ob hopping鈥�.
鈥淓xperienced, mature site managers and foremen are particularly desirable. A smaller contractor doesn鈥檛 want someone who鈥檚 going to be knocking on the managing director鈥檚 door in five years鈥� time.鈥�
Surveying and engineering
Private practices may be chasing the minute pool of surveyors in their mid-20s, but the burgeoning public sector market has got wise. Hays Montrose manager Clive Brown, who is based in central London, says there is a big demand for mature candidates from local authorities and his colleagues say the same thing is happening in the structural and civil engineering sectors. Brown says: 鈥淥lder candidates with good local knowledge are particularly suited to maintenance surveying roles that require good technical experience. My oldest candidates are well into their 70s. Preferring to remain static, their immense technical experience has proved invaluable in an office-based environment.鈥�
Facilities management and building maintenance
Mature candidates have a wealth of experience, they get the job done well and there is less danger of 鈥榡ob hopping鈥�
Of all the construction-related sectors, facilities management is undoubtedly the champion of the mature worker鈥檚 cause. The industry is still in its infancy but growing at a phenomenal rate and there is, as yet, very little FM-related education or training available. So, facilities managers need 10-20 years of experience to do a good job.
Tina Ling, Hays Montrose regional director for the South Home Counties, was delighted when a group of ex-army men, all over 50, asked to be put on the books. 鈥淭hese are dream candidates as far as FM is concerned. They are mature, disciplined and professional.鈥�
Hays Montrose consultant Sam Baker adds: 鈥淐lassic maintenance companies such as Haden and Drake & Scull have trained the industry and have had to watch their workers moving on to new companies. The commitment that you get from older guys makes them desirable.
鈥淗owever, more and more of my clients are buying into the ethos of mobile engineering 鈥� and the resulting longer hours and long drives do tend to favour younger engineers. It works out more cost effective to pay one man lots of overtime rather than employing two, so it would be worth bearing that in mind.鈥�
Any advice for older workers?
