Since the start of the Great Recession beginning in late 2007, there has been an increase of employment for people over the age of 55. These older employees have retained and found employment for differing and various reasons. It has been predicted that people over the age of 55 will increase in the representation of the American workforce in the next decade. Surprisingly older workers have been found to have been more persistent in finding employment and remaining employed more so than their younger competition (McMahon 141). Because of this new trend, many countries have come to rely on these older employees emerging in the workforce.
According to the AARP 20% of America's workforce is expected to be over the age of 55 by the year 2015, with an increase of 50% happening in 2014. This increase of people over the age of 55 in the workforce will naturally lead to a decrease in younger employees, aged 25-54 ( McMahan 50). Because of a longer life expectancy in the United States, our aging population will in turn create an aging workforce. Beginning in 1948 employees over the age of 55 steadily decreased until 1993 and up until the Great Recession beginning in 2007. Between the years of 1993 and 2007 there was an increase in the aging workforce of 9.3%, which was higher among women, with a 10.4% increase, than men, having a 7.6% increase. These treads are illustrated in the chart below (McMahon 141-142).
Typically the attachment to the labor market gradually declines among people between the ages of 55 and 64, contrary to employees within the prime working years of 26-54. The increase of employees over the age of 55 since the start of the Great Recession directly affects this and makes the norm of people over the age of ...
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Workforce diversity refers to the existence of individuals with different cultural, economic and social backgrounds within an organization (Claretha, 2014). In the modern world, there is increased level of diversity in the workforce due to increased level of awareness and socioeconomic interactions among people. Therefore, organizations have become multicultural places which require effective communication to ensure organizational success. That is, in the modern global community, the workplaces in various organizations have become more culturally diverse (Claretha, 2014). This has had serious impact on the personal and professional relationships among employees depending on the communication model that is established in an organization. In addition, due to the increased level of competitiveness in the business environment, organizations have been forced to establish suitable framework to effectively manage human diversity. This paper will analyze the concept of workforce diversity and organizational communication and determine its benefits and possible disadvantages in relation to business success.
While todays workplace has progressed many people experience bias throughout their career. In an article called “Ageism and Bias in the American Workplace”, the author discusses the dominant demographic in certain lines of work. Whether by age, gender, or ethnicity some may find difficulty finding work. In this article it discusses the bias against older workers. It was found that employers were less likely to hire someone older in assumption that production would decrease resulting in a decrease in profit, but it was discovered the older workers were more long term employees. (Ageism and Bias in the American Workplace, 2015) Although Jurgis was hired quickly at the meat packing plant due to his stature, his extended family (some of the women and children) had difficulty having the same
An aging population is indeed a problem for the society and will possibly cause many social and economic difficulties in the future. According to David Foot (2003), professor of Economics at University of Toronto, an effective birth rate of 2.2% against current 1.75% will be necessary to replace the current work force in the near future and the government’s policy of bringing in more immigrants will eventually fail (Foot, 2003, 2). However some people predict that the increased size of an aging population will drive growth in the home, health care, and many other industries resulting in job creation and economic growth (Marketwire, 2013, 1). Majority of the people are of the opinion that the issue will be mainly in the health care and economic activity. As humans age, they start to develop health problems, leading to more visits to a medical clinic putting extra burden on health care system.
(Bendick, Brown & Wall, 1999). A new awareness of older workers has emerged as retiring
Diversity can be differences in age, gender, ethnicity, and religion. Having such a diverse workforce can be very challenging. (1) Today’s workforce is very diverse in respect to age. Before, corporate America consisted of workers ranging from twenty one up to late thirties to early forties. Now, we see people in their mid to late fifties going back to work. This trend has both advantages and disadvantages. One advantage of an older employee over a younger employee is his ability to use his years of experience in situations where a younger employee lacks experience. Another advantage for an older employee is his built relationship with existing customers. The disadvantage of an older employee over a younger employee is his inability to quickly adapt to his changing environment. Younger employees are more “hungry” compared to their older counter parts. Their hunger is fired by their goal to quickly move up the corporate ladder.
Education about the generations reduces age discrimination and alleviates potential organizational “brain drain” as older generations leave the workplace.
The elderly population has been steadily rising as the generation known as the “Baby Boomers” matures. In 2010 the United States census reported the proportion of people age 65 and older to be approximately 40.3 million, or thirteen percent (U.S. Dept. of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, 2011). This trend is predicted to continue and by 2050 it is estimated that over twenty percent of the United States population will be over the age of 65. In addition, the fastest growing segment of this population will consist of those over the age of 85, or approximately 19 million people (U.S. Dept. of Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, 2010).
Diversity refers to the ways people differ from each other. These ways are significant and plentiful. Culturally, people vary in gender, age, ethnicity, race sexual orientation, educational background, religion, lifestyle, as well as veteran and/or immigrant status. Functionally, people vary in the ways we think, learn, process information, respond to authority, show respect and reach agreements (Pollar & Gonzalez, 2011.)
..., with the advancement of technology and medical systems, both the life span and available labor years have increased to a great extent. In such a context, the value of the senior citizens who intend to enter or reenter the labor force should be evaluated not only socially but also economically. While being praised for its function in social administration as an improvement in senior life quality and community harmony, senior employment should also be applauded for its huge economic value: with the adoption of this labor pool, the burden of population aging would be relieved considerably. Our program, which is going to put an emphasis on the minority group among the elderly, would provide an important supplement to the already existing senior employment assistance programs, in helping senior job seekers find their suitable location in the society and our economy.
The existing U.S. population is over 315 million and rising. In the year 2030, 72 million Americans will be 65 or older, a 50 percent change in age demographics since the year 2000. The change is primarily due to the aging baby boomers, who were born at the end of World War II. Americans are living longer than ever befo...
Merriam-Webster defines diversity as “the condition of having or being composed of differing elements; especially the inclusion of different types of people (as people of different races or cultures) in a group or organization” (Merriam-Webster, 2016). With diversity including many different elements, the concept of workplace diversity also covers a broad spectrum of topics, and continues to evolve as many companies look to expand globally. This subject has become increasingly important among managers over the last couple of decades, and has helped to reinforce other concepts such as affirmative action and equal opportunity employment. While most people believe that everyone should have the same opportunities available to them, and that we
Bowerman, Mary. "Americans Shrug off Worries over Aging Population." USA Today. N.p., 30 Jan. 2014. Web.
The focus of this paper is to elaborate on the changing landscape of work in America during the twenty-first century. According to the researchers, as the economy continues to slowly recover from the recession and economic crisis, more of our baby boomers are reentering the workforce. In addition to the introduction of automation and computer technologies into the workplace, this has dramatically changed the nature of jobs for the older workers (Czaja and Sharit 2009). As stated in the Government Accountability Office in 2006, the number of workers over age 55 is projected to increase significantly over the next 20 years. Evidence shows that ageism, stereotypes, and misinformation about our older population continue to be major issues across
Living in a country where it was founded by immigrants, diversity is everywhere you go especially in the workplace. There are many types of diversity; ethnicity, gender, religion and age just to name a few. Working in a diverse organization it can give you a taste of the real world, and what you will deal with wherever you go. There is so much diversity in the world today so it is a benefit to experience it in the workplace as well. You are given the chance to learn so many things from different cultures, why wouldn't you want to work in a diverse organization?