Giving older workers a voice: constraints on the employment of older people in the NorthWest of England

This article contributes to the literature on older workers and employment, providing a regional perspective on the relationship between age and work. The study is based on interviews in conjunction with occupational-event calendars with 56 individuals in North West England. The primary aim was to gain in-depth under-standing of perceived constraints that older people feel hinder their employment prospects within the context of their daily lives. Significant constraints on employ-ment and re-employment were identified and attributed to health, negative per-ceptions of self, lack of formal human capital and undervaluation of experience, financial disincentives for employers to employ older workers and prevailing ageist attitudes