Scott Saxton
INTS 3900-01
Presentation Assignment / Draft
Being
a Boomer
We
as humans have always found interesting, thoughtful, and sometimes provocative
ways of categorizing each other. We make judgments about the people we come in
contact with and the environment around us based on our experiences, education,
and our individual places in the world. We look to find common ground and
define our lives into communities where we have an identity as an individual as
well as a member of the community with common beliefs, values, and ideas. We
segregate ourselves into these communities and neighborhoods; sometimes by mere
chance and sometimes by choice. We do
not chose the family, socioeconomic situation, race, ethnicity, or the time and
place we were born; we do however chose what we make of the lives we are given.
The
start of the Baby Boomer generation came in 1944 with the end of World War II
and continued until 1964. Those who were born during these years are in the
community of the Baby Boomers. In 2009 the first of these baby boomers reached
the retirement age of sixty five and ushered in the beginning of the largest
cohort of people passing through time together in American history. Approximately
77 million Americans make up the community of Baby Boomers and will have a
significant impact on the economy, healthcare, and the demographics of America
for the next thirty or so years. Born in 1963 I am at the tail end of this Baby
Boomer community and I already see both the positive and negative influences we
as a community are and will have on the country. What will be the effect of the
Baby Boomer generation on employment, the economy, and what are the
psychological effects of an aging population having to work and provide for
themselves much longer than expected?
At
the beginning of the twentieth century a man born in 1900 at average lived to
the age of 48 and a woman born in 1900 lived to the age of 51. By the end of
the twentieth century a man born in 1997 has a life expectancy of 74 years and
a woman born in 1996 has a life expectancy of 80 years (PBS.org, 2013) . In January of 1935 President Franklin
D. Roosevelt sent his economic security bill to Capital Hill where it was
introduced to congress by two senators, Robert Doughton from North Carolina and
David Lewis from Maryland. A few months later congressman Frank Buck of
California renamed the bill the Social Security Act of 1935. Later in August of
the same year, after debate in both houses, the bill was past and signed into
law by President Roosevelt on August 14th, 1935 (Administration, 2013) . According to the
Social Security Administration: “Life expectancy at birth in 1930 was indeed
only 58 for men and 62 for women, and the retirement age was 65” (Administration, Life Expectancy for Social Security,
2013) .
Based on the information available at the time I am of the opinion that the
leadership of the day in 1935 could not have foreseen that life expectancy
would increase so drastically. A short nine years passed from the signing of
the Social Security Act of 1935 until the end of World War II; ushering in the
Baby Boomer generation whose first are now entering into retirement. With 77
million members the community of Baby Boomers will dominate the older age
population in the country for the next thirty or so years. Restating the
question, what will be the effect of the Baby Boomer generation on employment,
the economy, and what are the psychological effects of an aging population
having to work and provide for themselves much longer than expected?
Beginning
with employment one needs to analyze why Baby Boomers want to work longer than
those of previous generations. This idea is composed of both the desire to work
and the necessity to work past the normal retirement age. For many of the Baby
Boomer community the need to work longer than retirement age is a simple need
for financial resources to care for themselves and their families. For others
it is a need to continue contributing their knowledge and experience to the
next generation. A recent health and retirement study done on older workers
between 1992 and 2004 showed an increased report of those working past the age
of 65 up from 27% to 33% (Mermin, 2007) . The journal article illustrates the
necessity to work coming in the form of the erosion of the employer sponsored
retiree benefits and pension plans; forcing Baby Boomers to work longer than
normal retirement age. The speculation in the article also points out that
working longer will contribute to economic growth, more revenue for government,
and improved financial security for older
Americans (Mermin, 2007).
Americans (Mermin, 2007).
With
a combined membership of 77 million the community of Baby Boomers is a force of
strength for not only change but for securing the needs of an aging population.
According to an article by Equal Opportunities International there is much
being done to support the older workers of the Baby Boomer generation. The
article points to organizations such as the American Association of Retired
Persons (AARP), the National Council on Aging, and the American Council on
Aging; as just a few that lobby for the Baby Boomer community and their
respective needs. The article states that recently the nation Council on Aging
launched a 100,000 job campaign to assist and provide employment opportunities
for older workers, many who have past the age of retirement (Schwartz, 1999) . Many of those in
the communities of generation X and generation Y will have to compete for
available jobs with those of the Baby Boomer generation of older workers.
According to Equal Opportunities International, “the aging worker today will
experience a larger variety of employment opportunities depending on their
employment industry, their chosen occupation, and their education/skill level
attainment” (Schwartz, 1999).
The
Baby Boomer community as of 2008 makes up approximately 25% of the American
workforce. In a 2009 article in People and Strategy the effects of older
workers on the economy and employment are discussed. One of the critical topics
covered concerns the stereotyping of older workers and whether or not this
stereotyping will have an effect on or negatively impact businesses. Many
employment experts point out that unless many of the Baby Boomer community have
a willingness to work past the age of retirement; American business will not
have enough qualified workers to fill the needed positions, and that there are
not nearly enough workers to replace them. The article also points to the
negative effects of stereotyping older workers and the divisions that such
stereotyping causes within the organizations (Stark, 2009) .
The
77 million that belong to the Baby Boomer community have a considerable effect
on the economy. In the Journal of Targeting, Measurement & Analysis for
Marketing, the idea that the Baby Boomers have an active positions in life and
tend to be potent employees and consumers; and are a critical part of the countries
economy. Making the investment to retain them in the workplace and designing
marketing methods that are personalized to this large segment of the population
makes sound business sense. The article points out that much more research and
study into the attitudes, interests, and opinions of the Baby Boomer cohort is
not only necessary but important for the economic growth of the future (Coleman, 2006) .
·
More to come:
- How the Baby Boomers took their children’s future
- Aging Boomers / revolutionize retirement and transform America
- The emerging issue of Baby Boomers and substance abuse
- Boomers facing drug addiction
- Taking good care of yourself mentally and physically
Conclusion,
the after-effect / when the Boomers are gone
- The silver tsunami / preparing to meet the next wave of America’s under-served
- Baby Boomers will be mostly gone in the next twenty years
References:
Administration, S. S. (2013, November 27th). Life
Expectancy for Social Security. Retrieved from SSA.GOV:
http://www.ssa.gov/history/lifeexpect.html
Administration, S. S. (2013, November 27th). Social
Security History. Retrieved from SSA.GOV:
http://www.ssa.gov/history/tally.html
Coleman, L. H. (2006). The Baby Boomer Market. Journal
of Targeting, Measurement, & Analysis for Marketing, 14(3), 191-209.
Mermin, G. j. (2007). Why do boomers plan to work
longer. The Journals of Gerantology, 62B(5), S286-94. Retrieved from
http://search.proquest.com/docview/210154286?accountid=27045
PBS.org. (2013, November 27th). Infant Mortality
and Life Expectancy. Retrieved from The First Measured Centruy:
http://www.pbs.org/fmc/timeline/dmortality.htm
Schwartz, D. &. (1999). The Relationship Between
Age and Employment Opportunities. Equal Opportunities International,
18(5), 105-110.
Stark, E. (2009). How Age Stereotypes Impact Older
Baby Boomers Who Still Want to Work. People & Strategy, 32(4),
58-64.
Note: I still have at
least 6-8 references to add to the presentation.....
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