The Missing Match: Experienced workers, regional labour markets and access to suitable professional employment.

Abstract

Policies intended to extend working lives increasingly emphasise skills, retraining and the value of older workers’ experience. Yet possessing relevant qualifications and substantial occupational experience does not necessarily mean that an individual can convert those assets into suitable employment. Existing research identifies recruitment disadvantage among older workers (Runge et al., 2021; Centre for Ageing Better, 2021a, 2021b), while wider research highlights the importance of job accessibility and skills-to-employment alignment. This paper examines whether a potential missing match exists between experienced workers aged 50 to 64 and suitable professional employment within a regional labour market. The quantitative component uses Census 2021 occupation-by-age data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS, 2023) and regional labour-market and commuting evidence; the qualitative component uses structured analysis of advertised professional vacancies, including stated qualifications, experience requirements, working arrangements, hours, location and accessibility characteristics. The Census analysis identifies 51,003 residents aged 50 to 64 across the five Tyne and Wear authorities who were employed in the three occupational groups used in the study: managers, directors and senior officials; professional occupations; and associate professional and technical occupations (Office for National Statistics, 2023). The five local-authority totals were independently reproduced from the ONS source file and sum to 51,003. The vacancy audit shows that professional employment exists across all five authorities, but that practical accessibility varies according to working arrangement, office attendance, hours, location and employer requirements. It also identifies examples of part-time professional work and explicit recognition of transferable experience. The paper does not claim that geographical mismatch or age discrimination has been demonstrated as a cause of unemployment. Instead, it examines the conditions under which experienced professional workers and available vacancies may, or may not, constitute a practical employment match. The vacancy audit is purposive and illustrative, and the Census data do not identify current job-search activity or individual preferences. The findings therefore identify a potential matching problem and a framework for further empirical testing rather than estimating a regional match rate.