Small business owners see younger employees as dissatisfied and disloyal, preferring an older and more experienced workforce, recent research suggests.
Abbey Business Banking found that almost a third of SME bosses considered employees in their forties as being the hardest working age group. Next in line were workers in their thirties (24%), with twenty-something’s a distant third (14%).
Slightly less than a third described younger workers as either ‘not good’ or ‘poor’.
Ian Wilson, managing director of Abbey business, claims the research demonstrates the challenges SMEs face in sourcing the appropriate talent, in a sector where quality employees were essential. "People who run their own company often seem to expect more from their staff as they have a huge vested interest in the success of the business," he said.
The findings coincide with a study by law firm Thomas Eggar that shows UK firms are still risking age discrimination claims. Assessing compliance with the 2006 employment equality regulations, it found almost a quarter of companies were continuing to breach the new legislation.
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