When the loss of retiring baby boomers really hits the US workforce, some companies won't be scrambling.

Workforce growth expectancies (Source: MetLife)

Boston Scientific, First Horizon, The Aerospace Corp. and Weyerhaeuser are among businesses that have implemented various programs to address workplace shifts. Retirement workshops, apprenticeships and flexible work arrangements that provide health and pension benefits are some ways companies are ensuring talent gaps will be filled.  

There is "no panacea for addressing the needs of a mature workforce, said Sandra Timmermann, director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute, which recently published case studies on companies addressing aging workforce issues. "What's needed, instead, is a portfolio of strategies and solutions that balance the need to retain older workers while also transferring knowledge to younger workers, so that business performance can be sustained."

No doubt, the expected retirement of baby boomers - now aged 43 to 61 - will have a significant impact in the workplace. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that growth in the percentage of older workers between 2004 and 2014 will outpace that of younger professionals. 

During the 10-year period, the percentage of individuals in the workforce aged 55 to 64 is expected to increase 42 percent, compared to a 5 percent spurt in workers age 45 to 54 and an 8 percent decline in workers age 35 to 44. At the same time, the percentage of workers over 65 is expected to skyrocket 74 percent.

"When it comes to solving the problems of an aging workforce, the glass is both half empty and half full," said Dr. David DeLong, president of David DeLong & Associates "Organizations can focus on the barriers or the opportunities."

It's a Prime Time
Based on the case studies, MetLife found that companies would be wise to do the following: Think of phased retirement or flexible work options as a program, not a policy; create effective knowledge sharing relationships between older mentors and younger workers; educate workers about the economic consequences of leaving the workforce; and make knowledge transfer an explicit part of any job when rehiring a retiree. 

Here are specifics on how companies have handled the changes:

• First Horizons, a financial services firm, introduced a flexibility program that includes "prime-time" schedules. This initiative, which also functions as an informal phased retirement program, provides flexible work options for employees who would be expensive to replace. Under the prime-time schedule, employees who work 20 to 32 hours per week receive prorated pay while retaining full benefits, including health insurance. As long as the reduced schedule does not extend more than five years, working fewer hours has no impact on an employee’s pension because the final calculation is based on the five highest years’ salary out of the last 10. 

• Boston Scientific, a medical device manufacturing company, instituted a succession planning program in 2004 that pairs younger apprentices with veteran craftsman. Currently, Boston Scientifics' Wayne, New Jersey, plant is approaching its goal of 60 percent replacement readiness, meaning that of the facility’s 250 positions, the 60 percent deemed most critical would have someone capable of stepping into the position.

• Weyerhaeuser, the big forest products company, holds retirement planning workshops in which all employees over age 50 may take paid time away from their jobs to participate with their partners in a three-day workshop. About 2,000 people per year take the seminar at different sites across the US and Canada.

• Aerospace, a national security and commercial space company, created a "Retire Casual" program for re-employing retirees on a part-time basis. Today, about 300 retired employees can come back at any one time for annual government contracts, the size of which can be hard to predict each year.

"If the budget is bigger than expected, we have a temporary workforce waiting there who knows the company and the business," said Charlotte Lazar-Morrison, Aerospace's HR director. "The nature of our contracts has been a key to keeping this program going. It helps us keep a very stable environment because we don’t have to hire and fire full-timers, which creates cost savings for the company."

As part of the study, MetLife laid out several tips for companies and managers facing worker shortages, including:

1. Create and leverage a network of former employees;

2. Rehire retirees indirectly on a project basis when pension restrictions prevent direct re-employment;

3. Hire retirees with special expertise to innovate on critical projects; and

4. Tap the expanding pool of older people seeking employment.