Job hunt shake-up for older workers Denise Schultz is 69 and showing her younger McDonald's colleagues like Andrea Gorton and Tammy Sells that older workers can still cut it. OLDER jobseekers should not be forced to run down their hard-earned savings before receiving government assistance, the nation's ageing watchdog has warned. Age Discrimination Commissioner Susan Ryan told The Sunday Telegraph that older job-hunters should have immediate access to training and financial assistance when made eligible to receive the Newstart allowance. The assistance ranged from study and training allowances and counselling to help with phone bills. Such a move would avoid the situation of older work- ers becoming depressed and anxious about not being able to secure a new job, which she said was leading many to seek other more-costly benefits such as the disability pension. The comments come amid a national employment crisis facing older workers, who spend around double the time trying to secure a job. "From the complaints we get, people in their 50s are on the downhill road," Ms Ryan said. And then, of course, you can't get the pension until you're 65 so it becomes quite a desperate situation. At the moment, if you are mature aged, you have to run down your savings before you receive significant assistance. I believe this assistance should start from day one. Ms Ryan said forcing older jobseekers to wait until they had dried up their savings before being becoming eligible for assistance exacerbated the problems of depression and loss of confidence. The latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics for 2011 show around one third of unemployed people aged 55-64 years were jobless for at least one year, compared with 13 per cent of those aged 15 to 24. The Sunday Telegraph was flooded with emails from both job-hunters and employers last week, highlighting the difficulties in finding a job for an older worker without breaching anti-discrimination laws. Among the small but growing number of businesses encouraging older workers is the McDonald's chain. The fast-food restaurant chain, which has traditionally been associated with teenaged staff, has over 300 workers aged 50 and over working at 200 of its company-owned restaurants. Among them is Lalor Park resident Denise Schultz, 69, who works at the Blacktown drive-through outlet in Sydney's west. Ms Schultz, who has worked at the restaurant for 22 years, said she loved her job. "The customers call me granny - I love it," she said. I quite enjoy the fact that I'm an older person here. The younger ones often talk to me if they are down in the dumps. I have no problem having a younger manager. I think as an older person coming back into work you have to realise that sometimes you can't take a job like you had in the past. I am really thankful that McDonald's gave me the job. McDonald's human resources director Joanne Taylor said mature-aged workers made great mentors to the younger staff. "We know from experience that mature age workers add a lot to the workplace," she said. They are great at handling different situations and are able to relate to younger colleagues. Mature age work at McDonald's can also be a great way for a retired individual to gain a supplementary income whilst maintaining an active role in the community. They also tell us that working at McDonald's is great fun.