“We welcome calls to consider making flexible working the default for every job. The most common reasons people leave work before State Pension age include managing caring responsibilities or health conditions, and flexible working is effective in helping balance these with staying in work.
“ONS data out today shows older workers continue to be the fastest growing age group, so we can’t afford to wait on this. There were a quarter of a million more over-50s in work last year (1).
“But we know many people struggle with inflexible working practices that can result them leaving work before they are ready. That’s bad for them as individuals, impacting their earnings and social connections, and bad for the UK economy as employers lose out on the skills and experience older workers can bring.
“We need to move towards flexible working being the default, and for employers to take action to support everyone to work in a way that suits them best.”
