AARP Names Best Employers

For Workers Over 50

HARTFORD — The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) will host an awards dinner in Chicago on September 22 for the Best Employer for Workers Over 50. Of the 50 “Best Employers” AARP has recognized from around the country, three are from Connecticut.

The three are Pitney Bowes, The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc (The Hartford), and Yale-New Haven Hospital.

The companies honored by AARP offer some of the best policies and practices, such as phased retirement, generous 401(k) company contributions, flextime, job sharing, telecommuting, and compressed schedules for employees over 50.

A panel of judges assembled by AARP scrutinized businesses for recruitment practices, continuing opportunities for advancement, flexible work schedules, and benefits for current and retired employees.

This is the second consecutive year AARP has chosen Pitney Bowes and The Hartford as best employers.

 Pitney Bowes, which has a facility in Newtown on Edmond Road, offers a retirement education assistance program for workers 45 and older, reimbursing them up to $3,000 a year for courses of personal, educational, or retirement interest. The company also helps workers with end of life planning, assisting them in writing living wills and other documents.

Pitney Bowes also offers employees opportunities to expand their skills with job shadowing, rotating assignments, and peer coaching. The company offers a generous health benefit package and works to help low-income employees obtain comprehensive coverage. Pitney Bowes also offers flex time, job sharing, compressed work schedules, and telecommuting. And the company has designated an employee to work with retirees, who are eligible for temporary work assignments, consulting or contract work and part-time and full-time work.

AARP, now in the fifth year of recognizing Best Employers, is releasing highlights from research conducted over the past five years about mature workers, including top five concerns of employers about older workers; top five realities known by ahead-of-the-curve employers; top five reasons many 50-plus workers won’t retire; top five advantages of older workers; and the top five states where the most Best Employers have been based.

AARP invites employers to apply for AARP’s Best Employer award by submitting an application describing their practices and policies toward older workers. A consulting firm provides a preliminary rating of the applicants, then a panel of nine expert judges evaluates the applications, and their rankings, along with the consultant’s evaluations, lead to the final ratings This year 145 applications were received.