Strategy and actions for achieving productive aging in Japan

Area of Science:

• Occupational Health
• Gerontology
• Human Resources Management

Background:

• The global workforce is aging, presenting challenges for corporate management and employee well-being.
• Japanese corporations increasingly adopt strategies to accommodate older workers, with job redesign being a primary focus.
• Assessing functional age is crucial for developing effective management strategies for an aging workforce.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop strategies for corporate management tailored to an aging workforce.
• To create a method for calculating functional age, a key determinant in management strategies.
• To identify specific physiological and psychomotor factors influencing functional age.

Main Methods:

• Conducted a literature search of joint research between the Association of Employment for Senior Citizens and Japanese corporations.
• Tested physical, physiological, and psychomotor functions in 271 male workers aged 20-59.
• Analyzed test results to develop a formula for calculating functional age.

Main Results:

• Job redesign is a prevalent strategy (58.5%) in Japanese corporations for managing aging workers.
• Identified key factors influencing functional age: night vision, standing trunk flexion, timed vital capacity, systolic blood pressure, and jumping reaction time.
• Established a basis for a functional age calculation formula.

Conclusions:

• A functional age calculation method is essential for effective management of an aging workforce.
• Specific physical and physiological measures can quantify functional age.
• The findings support the development of targeted corporate strategies, including job redesign, for older employees.