Helping Americans to Work Longer
Table of Contents
- » Introduction
- » Redefining the Challenge
- » The Problem is Overstated
- » Meeting the Challenge
- Spending Health Dollars Wisely
- Improving Longterm Care
- Promoting Better Preventive Care
- Creating a National System for Home- and Community-Based Care
- Livable Communities
- Keeping Social Security Solvent
- Helping Americans Build More Retirement Assets
- Helping Americans to Work Longer
- Restoring the Federal Revenue Base
- » Conclusion
Key findings indicate that many of today’s workers want to continue to work or have viable work options later in life. A 2002 study by AARP and Roper ASW found that 69 percent of individuals between the ages of 45 and 74 who are either working or looking for work plan to work in some capacity during retirement.72
There is also some evidence to indicate that aging boomers, who as younger workers in the 1970s and 1980s provided an abundant supply of employees, will be called upon again to supply sufficient numbers of workers to ensure economic growth. Many employers are likely to face shortages of younger workers as the population ages. The Employment Policy Foundation reports that by 2011, when the first boomers turn 65, available jobs could outnumber workers by 4.3 million, and by 2031, that gap could widen to 35 million.73
A concerted effort to encourage workers to voluntarily remain in the workforce longer would have significant benefits for our society. It would help employers avert potential labor shortages projected by the retirement of the baby boomers. Finally, it would help individuals meet their needs for income during their later years and provide for continued productive engagement in society.
Government, employers, and individuals all have key roles and responsibilities for making this happen. For example, government can support a new vision of work in retirement by providing incentives for employers to hire older workers and for individuals to continue working. Government must also continue to enforce laws against age discrimination in the workplace.
Employers should be more aggressive in developing practices and policies with regard to hiring, retaining, and retraining older workers.74 For employers to get the most out of an aging workforce, they may need to redefine policies, such as flexible work schedules, telecommuting, training and education, phased retirement, and "bridge jobs" that offer new experiences and work-life flexibility. Incentives for employers to take these steps would be one way to achieve these goals without a required mandate.
Likewise, employees have a responsibility to keep themselves employable. That means keeping up with the latest technologies, being willing to learn new skills, and performing functions they may not have done in previous jobs.
There is no magic age at which someone can no longer work. Given generally better health and longer life expectancies, many people of "retirement age" have another 10 or 20 or more vigorous years ahead of them. As a nation, we cannot afford to waste this human capital.