According to Andrea Davis, at Employee Benefit News, the time is soon approaching when the older worker may not have much trouble finding a good job. She maintains that “…within less than a decade the United States may not have enough workers to fill expected job openings.” She goes on to say that by 2018, according to Boston Northeastern University, there will be more jobs than workers. That report suggests that employers will be asking older workers to work longer and trying to design jobs that older workers will want to do.
Ms. Davis’ article mentioned the Encore Opportunity Awards, which are given by San Francisco-based Civic Ventures. These awards are given to companies who specifically tap the experience and passion of workers over 50. The award is one of many admirable programs presently operating under the auspices of Civic Ventures. There were eight winners in 2009:
- Alliance of Early Childhood Professionals, Minneapolis – This nonprofit pays Native American “elders” to work with young children to pass along native languages and a sense of culture.
- Civitan Foundation Inc., Phoenix – Civitan’s Caring Connections program engages encore workers as direct caregivers serving people with disabilities.
- Executive Service Corps of Chicago, Chicago – This organization recruits, trains and places retired nonprofit executives in interim director positions in Chicago-area nonprofits.
- Gwinnett County Sheriff’s Department, Lawrenceville, Georgia – This public safety agency recruits and employs encore workers to fill jobs at all levels.
- Habitat for Humanity of Lake-Sumter Florida Inc., Eustis, Florida – Half of this organization’s staff is over age 50. Habitat provides homes for people living in substandard and overcrowded conditions.
- National Center for Appropriate Technology, Butte, Montana – Experienced workers help people in six states use environmentally sound, energy-efficient methods in farming.
- Orleans Technical Institute, a division of JEVS Human Services, Philadelphia – This technical training school employs retirees from the building trades to provide training and individualized support to at-risk students.
- Umbrella of the Capital District, Schenectady, New York – To help older adults and persons with disabilities live independently in their own homes, this nonprofit recruits 50-plus workers with the appropriate technical skills as “handypeople” for light carpentry, lawn and garden maintenance, house cleaning and transportation to appointments.
One of the winners from a couple of years ago happens to be in my back yard, so I took a look at the program. The winner was The Retiree Work Opportunities Program at UC Berkeley, which endeavors to connect former staff to current short-term or part-time openings. Retired staff members post online profiles that list their skills, work history and preferences, then hiring managers contact retirees about open jobs.
Additionally, I find that several faith based programs, such as Catholic Charities and the Latter Day Saint (Mormon) church aggressively pursue programs to connect job seekers with prospective employers. With regard to both the Catholic and Mormon churches, they specific target population subgroups, such as older workers. I have to admit to being pleasantly surprised and gratified by the number of resources that I found to be available to older job seekers, as I prepared this post.
I also found that if you are an older American seeking employment, you are in a large, sophisticated group. More than half of the Baby Boomers, approaching retirement age, say that they either do not or cannot retire at the age that their parents chose for retirement. Even though the average period of unemployment is longer for someone over 55, the overall statistics are more encouraging, in that a higher percentage are eventually finding work.
Times are slowly, but inexorably changing and employers are coming to the realization that there may be a integral role for the older worker to play in their organizations. If you are looking for career number two (or even three), keep on “kissing frogs until you find a prince” – make those contacts and send those resumes. Take advantage of the networking offered by the many civic and faith based organizations. Your new boss will be happy that you did, when you finally meet. He needs you. He may not realize that, until the middle of the interview, but he does.
Good luck, fellow Baby Boomer. Send me a note when you get the offer. I’d love to celebrate the moment with you.