Promoting lifelong learning for older people in Lithuania

Ilgalaikės prognozės numato neigiamus demografinių pokyčių padarinius darbo jėgos pasiūlos tendencijoms Lietuvoje. Vienas iš mažėjančios darbo pasiūlos sprendimų būdų – ilgesnis gyventojų dalyvavimas darbo rinkoje. Siekiant ateityje prailginti suaugusiųjų dirbančiųjų profesinę veiklą, būtina palaikyti jų darbo našumo ir darbingumo lygį. Pirmasis uždavinys yra įgyvendinamas per nuolatinį darbuotojų mokymąsi. Galima teigti, kad siekis įtraukti daugiau vyresnio amžiaus asmenų į užimtumą pasitelkiant mokymosi visą gyvenimą priemones nesulaukia pakankamo valstybės institucijų, paslaugų teikėjų bei darbdavių dėmesio. Straipsnyje siekiama įvertinti pastarąjį dešimtmetį Lietuvoje taikomas viešosios politikos priemones per vyresnio amžiaus gyventojų dalyvavimo mokymesi visą gyvenimą skatinimo prizmę. Šiam tikslui pasiekti buvo numatyta 1) remiantis prieinamais statistiniais duomenimis (Lietuvos statistikos departamento, Eurostat, EBPO) išanalizuoti suaugusiųjų mokymosi tendencijas šalyje, 2) remiantis antrinių statistinių duomenų analize bei mokslinės literatūros apžvalga nustatyti svarbiausias kliūtis suaugusiųjų, įskaitant ir vyresnio amžiaus, dalyvavimui mokyme, 3) įvertinti strateginius dokumentus vyresnio amžiaus gyventojų užimtumo ir mokymosi visą gyvenimą skatinimo aspektu. Taikomi metodai – antrinių statistinių duomenų analizė, strateginių dokumentų analizė, literatūros analizė.Long-term forecasts predict negative consequences of demographic changes on labor supply trends in Lithuania. The declining labor supply could be compensated by the longer participation of the population in the labor market. In order to prolong the professional activity of adult workers in the future, it is necessary to maintain their level of productivity and working capacity. The first task is implemented through continuous training of the employees. It can be argued that the desire to involve more older people in employment through lifelong learning measures does not receive sufficient attention from public authorities, service providers and employers. The article aims to evaluate the public policy measures applied in Lithuania over the last decade through the prism of promoting the participation of older people in lifelong learning. To achieve this goal the following tasks were envisaged 1) to analyze adult learning trends in the country on the basis of available statistics (Statistics Lithuania, Eurostat, OECD), 2) to identify the main barriers to adult participation, including older people, in the analysis of secondary statistics, 3) to evaluate strategic documents in terms of promoting employment and lifelong learning for the elderly. Applied methods are – analysis of secondary statistical data, analysis of strategic documents, scientific literature analysis. Following the development of strategic policy documents in the field of active ageing since Lithuania's accession to the EU, the following changes were observed. First, efforts are being made to move from an older person discourse as a recipient of support and services to the active role in society (some initiatives to strengthen the nongovernmental sector, empowerment, promotion of volunteering). Second, due to the rising shortage for skilled labor the focus was shifted on exploiting available labor resources, attracting older people to the labor market and encouraging them to remain in it. However, efforts to increase learning opportunities for seniors lacked detail. Only from 2015 the strategic goals began to be supported with appropriate financial commitments. At the same time, in view of the changing realities of the labor market and education and training, there is an increasing focus on enhancing the digital skills of older people. The current policy of active ageing still lacks attention to promoting the employment of the economically inactive group; no action has been taken to remove barriers to access to employment services for people of retirement age. Analyzing the learning of older people according to their status in the labor market (employed, unemployed or inactive), it becomes clear that sources of funding for training and their distribution (vocational training is most consistently funded by employer or employee, unemployed and jobseekers largely covered by European Union funds, the training of civil servants is mainly financed from the budget) leads to unequal access to education for older people depending on their employment status and sector. In this context, older people working in private companies have fewer opportunities. As the employer are responsible for the provision of the favorable learning conditions for this age group, strategic measures must include informative measures for the employers and strengthening their capacity to ensure such conditions. Statistics show that health and financial barriers to participation in lifelong learning lose their relevance compared to the overall low determination to participate in training. However, the reasoning "there was no need for training" may mask the presence of unfavorable socio-economic factors, such as low labor demand, especially in rural and peri-urban areas, dominated by small, low-tech and less knowledge-intensive enterprises and low-productivity agriculture. Accordingly, under the above conditions, investments in competence development will not always guarantee employment, higher earnings for the employee or higher value for the employer. On the other hand, the growing number of third-century university students testifies the desire of older people to acquire knowledge that ensures the need for self-realization and socialization, in other words, the desire to "learn for pleasure". Participation in non-formal education seems more attractive to older people, as evidenced by both foreign and domestic authors and in-country observed practices. The motivation of older people, as one of the key factors in participation in training, is practically not reflected in the measures developed at the state level