Diversity and Inclusion Are Key to Improving Longevity Fitness, Report Finds

Diversity and inclusion in the workplace are necessary to improve longevity fitness, or "how people can thrive, not just survive, throughout increasingly long lifespans," according to a new report.

Inequities based on race, geographic location, gender, and sexual orientation, among others, can all impact longevity fitness, according to the report, which is the third in a series from the Gerontological Society of America. Employers can help play a role in the cultural shift necessary to address problems like systemic racism, sexism and the gender wage gap, and anti-LGBTQ sentiment—but their efforts have to go further than mandatory diversity training, the report says.

"Mandatory diversity and inclusion training will help, but employers need to do more to facilitate longevity fitness among all their workers," saysRichard Johnson, Ph.D., senior fellow of the Urban Institute, who chaired the report's workgroup. "For example, they need to ensure that their benefit plans meet the needs of a diverse workforce. Employers also need to tailor financial and retirement counseling to address the challenges faced by different segments of their workforce."

无效如何影响寿命健身

The goal of longevity fitness is "to add life to years, not just years to life," the report says. There are three types of equity needed for longevity fitness: in relationships, which might include connections at work, a stable marriage, and friends and family; health equity, which can be affected by socioeconomic factors; and wealth, which includes "financial knowledge and behaviors," and "planning early, taking action in young adulthood," the report says.

“在每一阶段，人们需要采取某些步骤并实现某些里程碑以维持长寿的健身，”约翰逊说。“它始于教育并获得了一份好工作，然后通过房屋境内建立财富，投资退休账户，从事家庭，维护有意义的社会关系，保持活跃和订婚，饮食健康，获得优质的保健。你有多好老年真的取决于前面的一切。“

像地理位置，种族，性别和LGBTQ +状态等因素都会影响人们是否能够实现像良好的工作和房屋一样的里程碑。约翰逊说，生活在农村地区，内部城市，内部城市和美洲原住民预订的人们的机会与繁荣的大都市地区的机会有很大不同。

颜色人民也面临着医疗和就业歧视，以及其他类型的全身种族主义，影响他们的健康和建立财富的能力。Covid-19大流行尤为突出了基于比赛的健康差异。

“在大流行之后，”颜色的人比非西班牙裔人更有可能失去工作，“约翰逊说。“颜色的人们也更有可能在前线位置工作，使他们暴露于冠状病毒并威胁健康。”COVID住院和死亡人口也有不成比例地代表着颜色。黑人，特别是从Covid-19死于比白人死亡的可能性近三倍。

The report also describes how people of color are more likely to live in areas with lower-quality facilities, higher rates of crime, and live near heavy polluters or hazardous waste sites.“这些安排并非独特，但它们是在很长一段时间内引起的关于投资 - 或缺乏在医疗保健和其他基础设施和教育系统中，”MariCruz Rivera-Hernandez, Ph.D., a member of the report workgroup and assistant professor of health services, policy and practice at Brown University.

Women also earn less than men, often because they spend more time as caregivers, the report says. LGBTQ+ folks face more employment and housing discrimination and are more likely to experience substance abuse, homelessness, and mental health problems, Johnson says. All of these factors affect longevity fitness.

雇主的潜在干预措施

该报告包括一些方法，公司可以用来解决系统性种族主义，增加多样性和包容性，并支持更好的长寿健身。例如，该报告表明，公司收集和比较多样性数据随着时间的推移，Rivera-Hernandez解释道。它还表明公司更多地支持现有员工。

"Companies that have resources can and should provide similar benefits to all employees, including options for health care and retirement savings," Rivera-Hernandez says. "Access to high quality health insurance and healthcare access could help decrease health disparities."

Employers could also make voluntary retirement programs opt-out rather than opt-in "to increase the percentage of employees who are enjoying contribution matches and saving for retirement," the report says, citing one study that found changing to automatic enrollment in 401(k) plans increased participation rates from 37% to 86%.

Employers and unions should also ensure that health insurance plans cover the needs of LGBTQ+ people, including gender transition-related care and HIV prevention and treatment, the report says.

虽然雇主和联邦政府的政策改变将有助于解决对寿命健康产生负面影响的不公平，但报告还认为“为了做出有意义的变化，需要深入的文化转变来改善我们的世界并创造更加公平社会，“根据Rivera-Hernandez。

“Covid-19大流行突出了美国系统性不平等和结构种族主义的问题，我们应该使用这一刻来鼓励在我们的机构，组织和社区内的多样性和包容，”Rivera-Hernandez说。