Why the active pension is an employer branding tool – Human Resources

People retire in Germany every day. Project managers with 30 years of industry knowledge. Sales professionals who carry customer relationships. Masters who hear when a machine is not running smoothly. People who know what is written in the manual and how it actually works in practice. They are deeply rooted in the company. They know processes, customers, conflicts, shortcuts and the small details on which everyday collaboration depends.

The active pension: More than a tax issue

But an employment relationship doesn’t just end. The question also arises as to whether and how this experience could continue to have an impact. Because in times of skilled and labor shortages, employers can hardly afford to simply let this knowledge go. With the active pension, there is now a model that benefits both sides.

Since January 2026, employees subject to social security contributions have been able to earn up to 2,000 euros per month tax-free after reaching the standard retirement age. That sounds like tax law, but it’s much more than that. And it’s a good reason to expand your own employer branding.

Internal employer branding: timely, concrete, visible

Until now, employers have talked a lot about entry, development and careers. That’s all good and important. But they often say little about what happens at the end of a long professional career. And this is exactly where a new field of action is now emerging. If you want to retain experience, you have to turn it into a visible offer.

Internally, it starts with communication. Because people close to the standard retirement age should not find out by chance that it is possible to continue working. You should know in good time what options are available. Not in the last personnel interview, but when there is still time to develop a future role together. Maybe as a mentor, as a project supporter, as an internal consultant or as a source of knowledge for teams.

Employer branding for an overlooked target group

Externally, it is about an expanded picture of target groups. Employers don’t just have to appeal to young talent. You can also attract people who have experience, want to start new work or want to work in a different way. Various examples, in both large and small companies, already show that lateral entry, qualification and new career paths are not only intended for classic young target groups. This is exactly where employer branding currently leaves a lot of points behind.

The active pension is not simply an automatic extension of working life. Initially it simply creates a tax framework. It makes continued work more attractive, but does not give rise to a right to continued employment. And it does not oblige employers to proactively address employees. This is exactly why HR is in demand. The active pension only becomes an offer when companies actively approach people who will soon reach the standard retirement age.

But here lies a crucial point. Of course, it is not enough to employ experienced employees for one or two years longer. This would only postpone the loss of knowledge in time. The additional time must be used. For mentoring, for handovers, for knowledge databases. For reports on experiences that don’t disappear into farewell speeches. AI can also help to structure this knowledge and make it usable for others.

Three questions that count now

If you want to sensibly translate the active pension into your employer branding, you should now start with three questions:

1. Which employees will reach the standard retirement age in the next twelve to 36 months and what knowledge is associated with them?

2. What offers are there for people who want to continue to contribute but want to work differently than before?

3. How does the company make it clear internally and externally that experience is welcome?

These questions shift perspective. Away from the dull administrative matter of an exit and towards shaping a new phase of cooperation. This is employer branding from a stable attitude. Not as a campaign that costs a lot and fizzles out quickly. If it is the honest attitude that prevails in the company, it acts as a visible promise that experience really counts in your company – internally and externally. It’s about nothing less than tapping into a “new” target group, whose value has been underestimated for far too long.

Not a panacea, but an opportunity

The active pension does not solve the shortage of skilled workers. Nor is it a panacea for demographic change. But it creates an opportunity that companies should take advantage of. It invites you to view experience not as the past, but as a resource for the years to come.