How Boomers Impact the Job Market
03/13/2019
Statistically, Boomers are about to lose their position as the generation with the highest U.S. population, according to the Pew Research Center. In 2019, Millennials are expected to reach 73 million in number while Boomers will top out at 72 million.
Still, the number of Boomers in the job market is significant. According to an article in Forbes, workers age 55-plus accounted for around 23 percent of the labor market in 2018, up from about 18 percent in 2008, ten years earlier. In terms of the labor force participation rate, younger workers have either remained flat or declined from 1998 to 2018, while the 55-64 and 65-plus age groups have steadily increased.
Aparna Mathur, who authored the article, sees a number of reasons for this phenomenon. For one thing, many older workers need to work longer for financial reasons. For another, older workers are healthier and living longer, so they have the ability to remain in the work force longer than previous generations. Just as important, older workers want to remain in the workforce because work is rewarding for them.
The interesting side effect is that the current economy boasts a very low unemployment rate, which means it is more challenging for companies to find skilled workers. Guess what -- Boomers are skilled workers! Boomers can also offer employers flexibility in that they are willing and often want to work part-time, which turns out to be more cost-effective for the hiring companies.
So let's hope we are nearing a point at which the continuing desire of Boomers to work, and their resiliency in the labor market, intersects with the employment needs of companies. Only then will our society conquer age discrimination and realize the value that Boomers continue to bring to the table.
Have you heard about the new book, Boomer Brands?
Comments
You can follow this conversation by subscribing to the comment feed for this post.