Getting your player ready...
Recent reports reveal the challenge older job seekers face in the current hiring environment, with more than one-third of those 55 and older experiencing prolonged joblessness lasting longer than a year. However, the situation for older workers is not entirely grim. In fact, a new analysis of employment trends reveals that this segment of the population is enjoying the strongest job gains of any age group.
The analysis of government labor data by global outplacement consultancy Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc. found that job seekers age 55 and older account for nearly 70 percent of the job gains since Jan. 1, 2010. Overall, the number of employed Americans has increased by 4,319,000 between January 2010 and May 2012, according to household survey data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Older job seekers – those 55 and up – accounted for 2,998,000 or 69 percent of the total employment growth. It is true that a growing portion of older job seekers are enduring long-term unemployment. According to data from the Government Accountability Office, 55 percent of workers 55 and older have been unemployed for 27 weeks, with 36 percent out of work for more than a year. In contrast, just 23 percent of older workers were jobless for 27 weeks or longer in 2007. While a larger portion of older workers are experiencing prolonged unemployment, the overall unemployment rate for this group has seen improvement over the last two years, falling from 7.1 percent in May 2010 to a current level of 6.5 percent. The unemployment rate among older workers still has a ways to go before reaching pre-recession levels of about 3.0 percent, but the pace at which these job seekers are finding employment compared to younger ones suggests they could reach pre-recession jobless rates before anyone else. Older workers may be benefitting from a desire among employers to keep hiring to a minimum. The economy is still only slowly recovering, so employers have repeatedly indicated that they are only adding workers when absolutely necessary. In this environment, a seasoned candidate who brings a wide variety of skills and experience to the table is going to have an advantage over younger candidates. For employers, one experienced candidate is worth two or three younger, greener candidates, in terms of the ability to make immediate and meaningful contributions to output and the bottom line. Belying the myth that older workers are finding only low-paying jobs in retail or other service-oriented industries, the latest employment statistics reveal that some of the biggest employment gains for those 55 and older have occurred among managers and professionals. As of May 2012, there were 6,274,000 Americans 55 and older employed in management, business and financial operations. That is up 12 percent from 5,581,000 in May 2010.
