Ottawa founder of Top Sixty Over Sixty says turn to older adults to solve the labour shortage
Helen Hirsh Spence has always been a leader.
A lifelong educator, Hirsh Spence spent many years working in senior leadership roles with the Ottawa Carleton District School Board.
She is the former President of the Ontario Principals’ Council.Hirsh Spence was the Head of Elmwood School.
For many years, she was the Chair of the Board of the Jane Goodall Institute—working to raise funds for the famous primatologist.
Then Hirsh Spence retired.
And in her words, became "invisible."
"I was suddenly irrelevant to the general public because people really attach who you are with what you do, and it’s especially bad for women. It’s gendered ageism," says Hirsh Spence.
"My generation was very unlike former generations of those over 60 years old," emphasizes Hirsh Spence. "We still had tons of potential, and lots to offer, and yet we were not being given the chance."
So, Hirsh Spence began leading again. The energetic electric visionary founded Top Sixty Over Sixty.
She was taken back by the focus given to those celebrated as the best and the brightest in Top Forty Under Forty awards.
"That’s really what inspired me. We grew up in a youth-centric world. We want to make aging aspirational. Look forward to getting older. See what you can do because it’s wonderful."
That’s not what is currently happening on Canada’s employment scene, says Hirsch Spence.
"The older workforce is the untapped resource in Canada."
She explains that the CVs of older applicants are less likely considered than those of younger people vying for the same jobs.
Hirsh Spence says she has experienced “ageism” and was driven to create Top Sixty Over Sixty after having witnessed, firsthand, how ageism was impacting Boomers.
"It bothered me because we happen to be in the majority, practically. There are over seven million of us who are over the age of 60 and that number is just increasing."
Hirsh Spence wants companies to rethink their hiring.
She wants employers to focus on experience and the benefits of having a multigenerational labour force.
"Ottawa is one of the best educated cities in the country but the education that most older people have is not being taken advantage of here."
Hirsh Spence doesn’t believe youth should be valued more than experience. She wants to see people of all ages working together, fuelling each other.
"We’re really working with businesses to help them understand the value of either retaining or hiring some older workers," explains Hirsch Spence.
"The findings are, when you do have mixed ages in the workforce there’s a higher level of retention, organizational culture improves," she says.
"There are tons of advantages having older and younger people working together—mutual mentoring, reciprocal mentoring.
"It’s definitely affecting the talent shortage because we’re letting great people go, instead of spending time figuring out great ways of retaining them."
Through Top Sixty Over Sixty, Hirsh Spence intends to bring attention to the value and potential of older adults and to dismantle ageism.
"We help businesses harness the opportunities of demographic change and we help individuals find purpose and meaning in the next stage of their lives," Hirsh Spence says.
"Canada is experiencing a talent shortage, but it isn't taking full advantage of its ageing demographic. ‘Top Sixty’ advocates for age equity in the workplace and wants to help businesses take full advantage of their multigenerational workforce," says a passionate Hirsh Spence.
Hirsh Spence shares examples of Ageist Comments
More Examples of ageist comments
- He's over the hill
- You can't teach an old dog new tricks
- I just had a senior's moment
- She's past her prime
Ageism in advertising
- Anti-aging treatments
- Want to look 10 years younger in just minutes?
- The teeth that make you look younger!
- Deep Set wrinkle repair!
Ageism in the workplace
- When will you be retiring?
- How many more years do you have left?
- I can't give you this training, you'll be gone in a few years
- Colleagues excluding others in conversations, or in activities, based on age
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
B.C. seeks ban on using drugs in 'all public spaces,' shifting approach to decriminalization
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in 'all public spaces,' marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
Trump's lawyers try to discredit testimony of prosecution's first witness in hush money trial
Donald Trump's defence team attacked the credibility Friday of the prosecution's first witness in his hush money case, seeking to discredit testimony detailing a scheme between Trump and a tabloid to bury negative stories to protect the Republican's 2016 presidential campaign.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.