Recently released ONS data reveals that record numbers of people in their fifties and older are in part time jobs, with a 26% increase over the past decade. Of all the part time workers in the UK 42% are made up of this age demographic. When you think this through, it kind of makes sense. This demographic needs flexibility and part time for a variety of reasons, and may not financially need to work full time anymore. But that doesn't necessarily mean that they are less effective, committed or productive. 

It still surprises me how many businesses are stuck in the mindset of wanting to hire people for traditional 9-5 Monday - Friday jobs. There remains a reluctance to take on staff on a less rigid basis and away from the traditional fixed 37.5 hours. Within our own specialist recruitment consultancy, all of our senior recruiters work irregular unfixed hours, but they work around client/candidate needs and they are all brilliant at what they do. In my opinion there remains a bit of a bad brand image of the term "part time". There are connotations of "part-timer", not fully committed, less important etc. This is just not the case the majority of the time.

So I would urge travel and hospitality businesses to fully embrace part-time working, and snap up this burgeoning demographic of the workforce.