It’s semi-official – London may have its first “Older Workers Champion.” Sadiq Kahn boldly claimed recently he’ll still be working as Mayor in 22 years’ time at least – at the good age of 74. But before we get the age friendly bunting out, sadly many older London workers in London who also harbour this wish are experiencing difficulties in the labour market and need more support. Media reports show that London’s job market is returning to normal with job vacancies difficult to fill. Certainly, younger workers who bore the brunt of unemployment during the pandemic have bounced back. It […]
Author: Tim Whitaker
Tim Whitaker works on policy and communication issues affecting older people and an ageing society. He’s a Trustee of Wise Age a charity promoting training and support for workers over 50 in London and challenging ageism in employment and also is involved with Positive Ageing in London.
What can London learn from Leeds?
Many see the prospects of London becoming an age friendly city as stalling. It’s not down to a lack of good well-meaning effort from age activists, rather the arguments aren’t getting traction with London policy makers, particularly the Mayor of London.
High streets need to maximise the grey pound
The Mayor of London is on record as saying, “we need to be bold and innovative” to ensure the survival of London’s high streets which he calls “the heartbeat of our economy” and which need to be inclusive.
How older Londoners have been affected by the pandemic
The jury is still out on whether we’re over the pandemic. Recovery continues, summer holidays taken by some, but there are still rising cases and as the threat remains measures will need to be
taken in the Autumn with a bumpy ride ahead, even another lockdown could be on the cards.
City recovery planning from COVID and older people
Shortly after COVID arrived, demands were made to use it as the opportunity to do things differently, just as cholera epidemics of the nineteenth century led to clean water supplies and sewage systems. This is summarised as ‘Build Back Better’ — the wake-up call that COVID exacerbated problems, requiring us to come together and plan to improves people’s lives and prosperity.