Dignity Champion: Roger Tweedy
I am an Age Concern New Zealand Dignity Champion because I have been passionate about older worker issues since being approached to run the former Mature Employment Service in Wellington in the late 90’s.
This was life changing as NZ dealt with the wave of redundancies following the share market crash. The 3 years working with 100’s of people & hearing their stories was profound and I have carried that interest through to this day.
Whilst I still assist some people on a one-to-one basis my main work is on changing attitudes with employers including structural barriers, often government regulated, that can assist older people in their working lives.
"In all my work I strongly support a mixed age workforce. I strongly believe we need the experience of the older worker to mentor & pass on knowledge to the younger worker."
I do see a great deal of age discrimination, often not reported, and see the need for more support in this area.
Retirees are a strong educated group within society. The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
in the US are seen as one of the most powerful influencers of public policy. We need a similar voice in NZ.
This however shouldn’t be at the expense of younger people’s needs. As in the workplace, our wider community
need to be well-balanced with all ages contributing & supported.
You can also sign up as Dignity Champion to help champion the rights of older people in New Zealand.