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Publications
US NATIONAL INITIATIVES
Michael D. Giandrea, Kevin E. Cahill, and Joseph F. Quinn
Older Americans are staying in the labor force longer than prior trends would have predicted, often changing jobs late in life. This issue brief focuses on a specific type of transition: self-employment as a step in the retirement process.
In general, older workers regard self-employment as advantageous because it offers independence and flexibility. Trends show that more wage and salary workers switch to self-employment later in life, and once self-employed, older workers transition out of the workforce slower than wage and salary workers. Research also indicates that individuals moving into self-employment generally tend to be in excellent health, have pursued higher education, and have had high earning jobs.
Understanding self-employment is important to employers as the Baby Boomer generation approaches retirement age and labor shortages loom. If employers act to meet the needs of their aging employees, it is highly probable that they will be able to retain these valuable workers and avoid shortages. However, by not acting to retain these older workers, employers potentially risk losing a highly knowledgeable and motivated resource.
Maria Heidkamp & Carl E. Van Horn
A growing proportion of older adults do not have the option of retiring from work, due in part to rising prices and lack of sufficient savings. Yet, "as the economy continues to deteriorate, layoffs will be a cruel fact of life for many older workers," says co-author Carl E. Van Horn, from the John J. Heldrich Center for Workforce Development,
Rutgers University. "Older workers will face far tougher challenges as they seek to return to work than their younger counterparts."
Older and Out of Work – Trends in Older Worker Displacement is the first of a two-part series examining the issue of unemployed older workers. In this Issue Brief, authors Heidkamp and Van Horn discuss structural changes in the economy causing widespread unemployment for workers both young and old. This is especially problematic because research shows that older workers:
• tend to have more difficulty finding new jobs;
• more frequently experience discrimination with regards to salary;
• face negative stereotypes by employers when job searching; and
• often do not have access to necessary training programs.
"Losing a job is difficult at any age," observed Maria Heidkamp. "Yet, the evidence clearly suggests that workers in their 50's, 60's and older face special obstacles to getting re-employed. It is time to ask how employment and training programs can be more effective in bringing older unemployed workers back into workplaces where their talents are still needed and valued."
With talent shortages approaching as the Baby Boomer generation reaches retirement age, employers need to proactively ensure that they provide their older workers with a supportive work environment sensitive to their needs. For older workers, this often means providing greater workplace flexibility and benefits packages.
In the second Issue Brief in this series - Employer, Government and Non-Profit Assistance - the same authors explore employer, federal, state and community-based strategies designed to help older workers obtain new skills and return to work. The Issue Brief also discusses implications for policymakers, employers, and researchers. It will be published by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work in October 2008.
GLOBAL INITIATIVES
Ariane Hegewisch & Janet C. Gornick
The first of our new Global Policy Summary Series presents statutory employment rights, specifically regarding workers' rights to adjust work hours, in 21 high-income countries, including the United States. Changing ones' status from full-time to part-time as well as other alternative work arrangements, such as flextime, family leave, early retirement, and working time adjustments for training/education are included in this cross-national comparison.
"Most flexible work statutes try to find solutions that are workable for both employer and employee. While employers might have protested before the laws were introduced, once implemented most found them workable," says Ariane Hegewisch, Scholar-in-Residence at the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, and co-author of the Summary.
Many of these rights to flexible or reduced hours were introduced in the last decade in response to looming demographic changes which put a premium on encouraging people to stay in work.
"There is a big incentive for policymakers to support flexible work. When more people work, more people contribute to taxes and social insurance and thus provide for those who can no longer work," says Janet Gornick, Professor of Political Science and Sociology, CUNY, and co-author of the report.
Compiled by Farooq Pasha
The Center's newly revised Country Profile Series focuses on statistics that can guide decision-making at the workplace in different country contexts. Focusing specifically on labor force, economic and demographic data, the Pakistan profile offers insights into how the World Bank named Pakistan as the top macroeconomic reformer in its region, averaging GDP growth rates of between 6-8% since 2004.
STATE INITIATIVES
This fact sheet presents information about the unemployment rates in each state by age group, in order of highest to lowest unemployment rates among people aged 55+ in each state’s labor force. Addition age groups, such as under 25 years, and 25-54 years, are also presented.
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