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I have been speaking on this subject since 1970 and so I am beginning to feel like one of the cast in The Mousetrap which has been playing for even more years than that. But soon after I spoke in November 1984 at an MKA Conference (Tower Hotel, London), a piece appeared in the computer press giving a 100‐word summary with typical inflammatory headlines of what I took an hour to say. The headlines related in no way to what I said in my one‐hour presentation but to a background chat during the lunch break. As a result, someone wrote a letter to the publication attacking me for identifying the possible high cost of implementing the Act because in his words, ‘the Act does not make any demands over what a normal business should do’.

The purpose of this paper is to present a study of age management in small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs) in the UK.

Qualitative data collection and exploratory research with six SMEs comprising of: initial interviews with representatives from the SMEs; action research activities designed to raise awareness of age management issues and age discrimination legislation; and follow‐up interviews to ascertain if awareness raising activities resulted in any changes, or planned changes, in policy, practice and attitudes towards older workers.

Good practice in age management can be found in SMEs, but was not found to be part of a systematic strategy. Negative practices and attitudes towards older workers are observed, with positive and negative age stereotypes coexisting. Negative stereotypes displayed can undermine the perceived economic value of older workers. There may be a gap between policy and practice, but awareness raising campaigns that reach employers can influence existing ways of working by showing the benefits of an age diverse workforce and helping reduce prejudices against older workers.

The sample size is small and context specific. However, the study usefully illustrates different approaches to age management policies and practices in SMEs, and the potential benefits of age management awareness in influencing attitudes and practices towards older workers in SMEs.

The experience of age management in SMEs is under researched and examples of good practice in age management are often drawn from large organisations. The paper highlights that SMEs often lack the resources to seek advice regarding age management; therefore, those responsible for age management awareness raising activities may need to approach businesses directly.

University libraries have traditionally been the primary caretaker of scholarly resources. However, as electronic modes of information delivery replace print materials, expectations of academic libraries have evolved rapidly. In this environment, academic libraries need to be adaptable organizations. Librarianship, though, is deeply rooted in strong values and beliefs which inherently limit receptivity to change and innovation, but these constraints are not absolute. Social network research indicates that professional advice networks play a significant role in how one thinks about and performs work and that individual perspectives are broadened when diverse input is received. Based on social network analysis methods, this study explored the relationship between individual receptivity to innovation and the composition of a person's professional advice network through a purposive sample of academic librarians in Illinois. The group completed a survey that explored two dimensions: (1) the nature of relationships within their professional advice network and (2) the individual's personal receptivity to innovation. Analysis of the nature of relationships within the professional advice networks was based on a combination of quantitative and qualitative techniques, in contrast to the analysis of the respondents’ receptivity to innovation which was based on quantitative measures. Based on the information from the 440 respondents, the results of this research indicate that there is a relationship between the size of the professional advice networks and individual's receptivity to innovation, but additional aspects of the professional advice network may play a role in an individual's overall receptivity to innovation.

The role of the public reference library today is unclear. As a result there is a loss of purpose, staff are confused and collections are being weakened or broken up. Examines the history of the large urban reference libraries and the aims and motivations of their protagonists and early librarians. Concludes that many of these aims are still valid. The decline of the reference library coincides with the rise of information science, new service philosophies, and the weakening of public access to our printed heritage. Argues that there is a need to develop regional book and information centres, a need therefore for regional reference libraries.

This study aims to examine the impacts of employee wellness programs on employee and organizational outcomes in the hospitality industry.

A survey was distributed on Amazon Mechanical Turk, targeting hospitality employees who have access to employee wellness programs. Descriptive statistics, confirmatory factor analysis and structural equation modeling techniques were used.

Employee perceptions of wellness programs significantly impacted turnover intention, job stress (JS) and perceived organizational support (POS). POS had a significant mediating effect between employee perceptions of wellness programs and JS. Employee perceptions of wellness programs did not have a significant effect on emotional labor.

Employee wellness programs are often recommended to human resource managers, but there is little empirical evidence of their effects, particularly for hospitality industry employees. This study investigates the actual employee outcomes of employer-sponsored wellness programs.