Summary of this article
· Nightingale Job 60+ is a job fair, conducted every year in Bengaluru for senior citizens
· This time employers offered over 630 job vacancies for seniors
· 1000 seniors participated and 348 applications were shortlisted
Senior citizens are those who are aged 60 years and above. This age is quite crucial in the job market, because employers hesitate to employ people of this age for different reasons. Although due to medical advancement, in today’s time, a person remains healthy and can work as a matter of practice, employers retire their old employees. However, seniors who have retired from such employers and want to continue working may explore jobs at job fairs. Every year, Nightingales Empowerment Foundation, in association with St Joseph’s University and the Archdiocese of Bangalore, conducts a free job fair in Bengaluru for senior citizens.
This year, around 1000 seniors participated in the fair ‘Nightingale Job 60+’ conducted on September 7, 2025, for more than 600 vacancies. A total of 60 employers participated to offer job vacancies primarily in administration, accounts, marketing, engineering, supervisory, and security. Besides this, over 500 job opportunities were in the nature of self-employment in the insurance sector. Of the total job applications, employers short-listed 348 applications, and finally, 58 senior citizens were selected and received their offer letter.
Says S. Premkumar Raja, co-founder and secretary, Nightingales Medical Trust, a non-government organisation (NGO): “The interest is more and compared to around 800 job applicants last year, this year more than 1,000 seniors participated. We have been conducting this job fair for past one decade and can confidently say that senior citizens want to work but there are not enough opportunities for them.”
An Ecosystem For Seniors: Financial Security Is A Challenge
Considering the rising population of senior citizens in India, which is expected to almost double from 10.5 per cent of the total population in 2022 to 20.8 per cent or around 350 million by the middle of the century, it is crucial to establish an ecosystem in which the elderly can peacefully spend their lives. A system where their healthcare needs are taken care of, they don’t feel isolated, and they have financial security.
According to the Nightingale Medical Trust’s statement, financial security is one of the biggest challenges. Of around 15 crore senior citizens in India, 89 per cent have no pension coverage. It highlights the data from the elder helpline – 1090, which is a joint project of the Trust with the Bengaluru City Police, that financial dependency on others leads to neglect and abuse.
Why Financial Security Is Crucial?
The elderly who are dependent on others for their livelihood are prone to physical, psychological, and financial abuse, and this brings attention to providing them with financial security. According to Niti Ayog’s Position paper ’Senior Care Reforms in India: Reimagining the Senior Care Paradigm, 2024, and HelpAge India’s report ‘Ageing In India: Exploring Preparedness & Response to Care Challenges’ (2024), physical ailments and financial standing are the primary cause and these can be tackled with more awareness, support, social engagement, digital literacy, and financial empowerment.
There should be more job opportunities suitable for older adults because they intend to work; sometimes for money and other times for fulfillment. But they are ready to work. This should no longer be neglected considering the meager pension coverage in the country, says Raja, and adds, “Now, this is a social need.”
