Employability and performance: a comparison of baby boomers and veterans in The Netherlands

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine how the baby boomer generation and the veteran generation in the Netherlands perceive their own employability and how this is related to their self-reported job performance.

Design/methodology/approach

In total, 973 workers in employment aged 45 and over filled out a survey measuring self-perceived employability and self-reported job performance. Data were analyzed by the use of t-tests and multiple regression.

Findings

Based on the human capital theory, it was found that self-perceived employability was positively related to self-reported job performance. However, in contradiction with our expectations, the veterans perceived their internal and external employability as more positive than the baby boomers.

Originality/value

This study distinguishes between two generations that are part of the group “older workers”. Moreover, we show that a positive relationship exists between one’s perception of one’s own employability and their self-reported performance.

Citation

Hennekam, S. (2016), "Employability and performance: a comparison of baby boomers and veterans in The Netherlands", Employee Relations, Vol. 38 No. 6, pp. 927-945. https://doi.org/10.1108/ER-10-2015-0186