Unemployment is tough on the over 50s

With this in mind, Saga believes that policy makers should endorse phased retirement to accommodate the needs of our ageing workforce.

Responding to the latest grim employment statistics, Saga Director-General Dr Ros Altmann said: "The dangers of long-term unemployment for older workers is a very serious problem and it seems the Government is yet again ignoring the needs of older generations.

"In an ageing population, we cannot afford for older people to be out of work. Unemployment figures reveal that the only age category to see an increase in long-term unemployment is people over 50.

"The amount of over 50s who have been out of work for over a year is now 189,000, which is an increase of over 12% on the previous three months.

"Another shocking fact is that the long term unemployed account for 44.5% of those over 50 who do not have a job. This shows that people who lose their jobs after the age of 50 are much less likely to find a new job than any other age group.

"Fixed retirement is no longer a certainty, and the UK needs to adopt a culture shift towards phased retirement in order to accommodate for our ageing workforce.

"We need employers to embrace their ageing personnel and capitalise on the experience and wisdom that older workers can bring.

"The UK must wake up to this new reality or see the economy continue to suffer further effects if we shun older workers."