By LEE U-WEN

PHARMACY technician Anthony Joseph may be 70 this year, but his employer - the National University Hospital (NUH) - wants to hold on to him as long as possible.

Having recently passed a medical examination, he was recently given a one-year extension to his contract, guaranteeing him a job until the end of next year. This is the eighth time his contract has been renewed.

The grandfather of six has no intention of retiring. He wants to carry on working - not because he needs the money, but so he can remain mentally and physically active and have something to look forward to every day.

NUH is one of scores of unionised companies that are getting a headstart in re-hiring older workers ahead of a law from January 2012 that will make it mandatory for companies to offer re-employment to people who have reached 62.

As a first step, they will have to offer re-employment to workers up to the age of 65. This will later be raised to 67. The latest figures from the labour movement show about 5,400 workers aged 62 and above have been re-employed in the unionised sector.

Some 750, or about two out of three unionised companies here, have signalled their commitment to re-hire older workers - up by 100 since last October. Of the 750, about 40 per cent have formal re-hiring procedures in place, as opposed to ad-hoc arrangements.

The Healthcare Services Employees' Union, of which Mr Joseph is a member, has included a re-employment commitment, with accompanying details, in its collective agreement - a move that took effect in April this year.

The union's vice-president K Thanaletchimi said: 'We have been a first mover on re-hiring older workers and want to make a big push in the coming years as our work force continues to age.'

NTUC deputy secretary-general Heng Chee How said that most unionised companies still wait until the 11th hour - often until workers hit 60 - before discussing re-employment.

'It's a little late in my view,' he said. 'It's best if employers start earlier, say when staff are in their 50s, and show them the plans they have and what options are available.'

Mr Heng said that Singapore's population is ageing rapidly. One in 12 residents are now 65 or older. And by 2030, that ratio will be one in five - similar to that in Japan today.

Industries that have taken the lead in re-hiring older workers include hotels, cleaning, retail and food manufacturing, said Mr Heng, who is also a minister in the Prime Minister's Office. 'These are the ones which traditionally have large clusters of older workers, and they have long seen the value of keeping them employed.'

Companies should not expect to be spoon-fed and wait for the government to come up with a 'national decision' on what to do when it comes to re-employment, he said.

'Re-employment is different for everyone. You have to sit down and decide what works best for your company, and tailor-make the systems and processes so you can reap the maximum benefits from the workers and vice versa.'

This article was first published in The Business Times.