I've written frequently about how age discrimination tends to force Boomers out of their jobs and into early retirement. In March 2018, a rather stunning report by Pro Publica and Mother Jones uncovered alleged massive elimination of older workers at no less a stellar company than IBM. According to the Pro Publica investigation, "ProPublica estimates that in the past five years alone, IBM has eliminated more than 20,000 American employees ages 40 and over, about 60 percent of its estimated total U.S. job cuts during those years. 

"In making these cuts, IBM has flouted or outflanked U.S. laws and regulations intended to protect later-career workers from age discrimination, according to a ProPublica review of internal company documents, legal filings and public records, as well as information provided via interviews and questionnaires filled out by more than 1,000 former IBM employees."

Sadly, this is just one example of widespread actions taken against highly skilled Boomer workers who have decades of experience, want to continue to work, and in many cases, need to continue to work. Once let go, of course, age discrimination continues to plague them, since an unfairly fired Boomer often has great difficulty getting re-hired by another company.

This is one reason the gig economy is flourishing. Self-employment in the U.S., according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, is highest among people 65 and older (24.1 percent), with second highest among people 55 to 64 years of age (14.7 percent). A forecast by Intuit predicts that 7.6 million Americans will be working in the "on-demand" economy by 2020, which is  more than double the number in 2015. The on-demand economy will continue to see healthy growth in subsequent years, with some 79 percent of workers saying they take on part-time gigs.

Some other facts about the gig economy are impressive enough to open the eyes of Boomers who need to seek non-traditional employment, as reported by The Balance:

• 70 percent of self-employed workers chose that status of their own free will for either a primary or supplemental source of income (McKinsey Global Institute)
• Over 50 percent of self-employed workers want to stay that way -- they intend never to return to traditional full-time employment (LinkedIn ProFinder)
• 20 to 30 percent of workers in the U.S. and Europe are engaged in "some form of independent work" (McKinsey Global Institute)
• Numerous industries are showing robust growth for self-employed workers, including healthcare, real estate, construction, finance, and software/IT services (LinkedIn).

Bottom line: If you are on the outs with full-time employment, maybe it's time to get into the gig economy.