Older workers bring essential qualities to the workplace—experience, reliability, and a strong work ethic. But due to current demographic trends, there may soon be a shortage of these workers.

The need for older workers

Older workers generally include anyone born before 1964 (Baby Boomers and the earlier "Traditionals"). The next generation of workers after the Boomers—Generation X—is much smaller.

Experts fear that Boomer retirements—an estimated 10,000 per day until 2030—will trigger a serious brain drain along with labor shortages. So finding and retaining older workers will be key to staying competitive.

Resources for learning more

Learn more about the benefits older workers bring, and tap into the latest trends in recruiting, training and development, phased retirement, and more:

• Older Workers by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), offers best practices and strategies for engaging and retaining older workers.
• Recruitment and Retention of Older Workers, from the National Center on Workforce Development, examines strategies used by U.S. companies to recruit and retain older workers.
• Older Workers and Disability Employment Policies, from the U.S. Department of Labor, offers a collection or resources that provide more information on the topic of older workers.

To learn more about hiring older workers and other workforce issues, contact your local American Job Center and ask to speak to a Business Services Representative.