forget big resignationThe upheaval of Generation Z workers seeking fulfillment and treating their work like a game of musical chairs will resolve over time. They spend their whole lives trying to find what suits them.
The bigger crisis is what to do with all those over-50s looking for paid employment. This is he one of the worst times for a worker during the twilight of his career.that’s all half of americans Stable adoption until the 50s.That’s all for last year A quarter of workers aged 55 to 59 In other words, I didn’t have a job to retire from.
COVID-19 has exacerbated this trend, leaving millions of older American workers I lost my job disproportionately.
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Around the world, full-time, secure employment culminating in pensions has become a relic of the pre-pandemic past. In the United States, more and more workers cannot afford to retire, not because of inflation and uncertain retirement savings.Workers now have to wait until he’s 70 to receive maximum Social Security benefits, Congress expected to debate raise age for Social Security eligibility next year.
It makes sense to allow people to work longer to increase their retirement benefits.But Many who need to work longer cannot because they lose one’s job They can’t find another job long before they reach retirement age. So they are effectively retired.
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Multiple Factors Create Difficulties for Older Workers
The disappearance of stable employment with a living wage and benefits, once a driver of upward mobility, is fueling rising inequality. Global crises such as COVID-19, changing business models, and new technologies have led to an increase in low-quality temporary jobs.
If an employee has a physically demanding job such as retail or hospitality, Poor health could force them to drop outMany workers in their 50s also have caregiving responsibilities for older generations that temporary gigs can’t handle.and of course there is ageism.
a A report from the Brookings Institution was found There is a strong relationship between regular employment in the 50s and employment after the 60s. Therefore, interventions to help older workers should start early, even if she is in her 40s. This can be achieved by improving the quality of low-paying jobs, such as higher minimum wages, more flexible work schedules and paid holidays, to reduce turnover. This allows people to work longer.
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For businesses as well, this presents an opportunity to avoid productivity losses in the long run by maintaining a stable workforce. Companies that rely on a disproportionate number of hourly workers tend to have high turnover.they again Less likely to invest in employee training and technology.
Helping older workers develop in-demand skills will help them get jobs again and meet the needs of businesses.
Such efforts are essential to maintaining social security benefits. Expected to be reduced by more than 20% Come 2034 unless Congress and the President intervene. Without action, monthly benefits will drop by hundreds of dollars on average, and no one under 55 will receive their full benefits.
Still, unemployment statistics tend to exclude workers in their 50s who have been forced to retire early. According to sociologist Beth Trousdale, it happens because they are not part of the prime working force and have not yet reached the age threshold associated with retirement. Brookings paper authorWorkforce and retirement policies should be considered one system, but instead these workers slip through the gap.
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Demographic change threatens the global economy
It’s a gap that only gets bigger and harder to fill over time.
This is alarming. elderly populationIt’s a time bomb, not something that’s growing.
The world population has just passed the 8 billion mark, life expectancy is increasing and fertility rates are declining. Worldwide, people over the age of 75 are the fastest growing group of people in the workforce. Today, 40 million Americans are over the age of 65. Numbers expected to double over the next 40 years.
If we don’t prepare for this inevitable demographic change, we’ll have a shrinking workforce and struggle to support a rapidly growing number of “retirees.”
Indeed, improving working conditions in low-wage jobs and training programs alone will not solve the myriad challenges facing older workers.Year discrimination continues.
For example, IBM was forced to withdraw. Over 20,000 workers over the age of 40 For the past five years, and that facing legal action as a result.
Unfortunately, among the working population of more than 40 million Americans over the age of 50, 2018 Analysis by ProPublica and Urban Institutehalf of them could be fired or forced to retire, regardless of income, education level, or geography.
Unless we increase legal protections for older workers and change business models to value work experience as a competitive advantage needed to increase productivity, older workers will face fewer opportunities and higher poverty rates.
The disappearance of workers in their 50s should become a more important factor in future job discussions. Even if all of Gen Z’s work quirks are worked out tomorrow, a massive workforce crisis is looming.
Katrin Park is a freelance writer and International Food Policy Institute.
