Redundancies for workers aged over 50 rose almost 200 per cent in the past year – we are here to
support you!

Redundancies for workers aged over 50 rose almost 200 per cent in the past year. 107,000 workers
were made redundant between November 2020 and January 2021, representing an increase of
70,500 additional redundancies compared to the previous year, a study by the Rest Less found. The
redundancy rate was the highest of any age group, at 12.8 per 1,000 employees. The study,
conducted by Rest Less, found there were an estimated 1.3 million over fifties on furlough at the end
of February 2021 – 28 per cent of the total furloughed workforce.

Previous research by Rest Less has shown that once unemployed, workers aged over 50 are two and
half more times likely to drift into long-term unemployment than their younger counterparts due to
age discrimination. Whitehead-Ross Education has a number of programmes, which are able to
support people aged over 50 to retrain and access support. In Swansea our Employability Skills
Programme can provide support for up to 26 weeks, with access to various short qualifications. In
East Cornwall we are delivering various taster courses for exploring careers in the child workforce
and hospitality sectors. In Dorset and Herefordshire our adult community learning courses include
business start-up, leadership and management and child workforce qualifications. In Brighton and
Hove we can provide support to achieve digital and ICT qualifications.

Ian Ross, Managing Director, said “People aged over 50 have a huge wealth of experience and
transferable skills. We regularly find that over 50s who have been made redundant have been in the
same job for many years and suddenly having to apply for jobs can be a shock. We can provide
support in writing an up-to-date CV and preparing for interviews, along with accessing a variety of
qualifications to retrain. Young people and the over 50s have been most affected by the coronavirus
pandemic. One advantage for people aged over 50 who find themselves made redundant is that
their previous work experience and transferable skills can be highly valuable for employers. We can
provide impartial information, advice and guidance to help older job seekers to move into a new
sector and career.”