"You lose confidence in yourself, I think, a little bit…" A qualitative study exploring the perceptions and experiences of the barriers and facilitators to wellbeing in women in work over 60 years old.

Introduction: Life stress accumulation across the life course disproportionately negatively impacts wellbeing, cognition, and health in ageing women, yet there is a paucity of research exploring the perceptions of ageing women in work. Methods: This study draws upon unique data to provide an understanding through illuminating the intersectional wellbeing of gendered ageing in ageing women in the workplace in UK focusing on lower-paid roles in the Northwest of England. Semi-structured interviews were used to explore the perceptions of older women's wellbeing in an opportunity sample of ( Results: There were two central themes: Barriers to Wellbeing and Facilitators to Wellbeing. Barriers to wellbeing encompassed the following subthemes: (1) the Taboo of Womanhood: the limiting nature of being an ageing woman as a barrier to wellbeing; (2) Feeling of Invisibility: intergenerational barriers to wellbeing; (3) The workplace environment: prolonged standing, and physical and emotional strain nature of role as a barrier to wellbeing; (4) Negative self-perceptions of growing old: health deteriorations, mortality perceptions, and lack of energy; (5) Financial factors as a barrier to ageing women's workplace wellbeing. Whereas facilitators to wellbeing were encompassed in the following subthemes: (1) The value of older women in work as a facilitator to wellbeing; (2) Support from line manager as a facilitator to wellbeing; (3) Rejecting the label/stereotype as 'older' as a facilitator to wellbeing. Discussion: Workplace policies and practices should actively challenge the taboo surrounding women's wellbeing, value older women in work, and provide flexible, supportive environments and management that enable open conversations and respond to women's changing needs across the life course.