Training for older workers: which factors do influence desirability? A factorial study of Italian HR professionals' attitudes

The central research questions of the paper are: What factors influence the support of HR professionals for the training of older workers? For what kind of training and in which situation are they more likely to train them? We carried out three factorial surveys administered to 66 HR professionals in Italy. Participants made specific training decisions based on profiles of hypothetical older workers. Multilevel models indicate that access to training decrease strongly with age and that highly-skilled and with low absenteeism older workers have more training opportunities. Moreover, those with good performance have more chances to receive training than older workers with poor performance, suggesting that training at the end of the career may serve as reward for those who do well, and not as a means of enhancing productivity. The age of HR professionals involved in the training decision is positively related to the chance of older workers to be trained.