Did you know that two-thirds of all seniors who have ever lived on this planet are alive today? That statistic begs the question: So what are we going to do with all these oldsters? They’re a drain on our resources. They’re unproductive. Who wants to hire someone in his or her 50s, let alone older? They’ve outlived their usefulness! ”Hire young people cheaper” is the battle cry heard in many a boardroom around the country. That sentiment doesn’t augur well for older people, given the average life span in America has risen to almost 77 years. And those that reach age 65 can expect, on average, to live another 18 years longer.
Therein, my friends, lies the roots of ageism. Older people are besieged by stereotypes. When you’re labeled with pejoratives like “geezer,” “codger” and “near-dead” you have a lot to overcome—especially if you begin to buy into the negative image yourself. Webster’s defines “ageism” as, “a tendency to regard older people as debilitated, unworthy of attention or unsuitable for employment.” What chance do seniors have when they’re thought of as feeble in mind and body? And we’re talking about lots of people here. The United States population aged 65 and over is expected to double within the next 25 years. (Can anyone say “baby boom generation”?) By 2030, almost one out of every five Americans—72 million people—will be 65 years old or older. On top of that, the 85 and older age group is the fastest growing segment of our population.
It didn’t used to be this way. Once upon a time, attitudes towards the elderly were decidedly more positive. I sure remember being told to respect my elders. And I did. They were respected for their knowledge and wisdom—and maybe just because they’d survived so long. It was expected that they pass along their wisdom to the younger generation. Maybe it’s because there used to be so many fewer seniors among us that they were venerated. With the advent of better medical and nutritional care, it’s not the rare exception when a person lives to age 85 but the norm. Another factoid predicts that, by the year 2080, there will be over one million people alive in the United States who are 100 years of age or older!
It used to be living in multi-generational homes was the accepted practice. Grandparents, parents and kids all living together. In that setting, the grandparents were a needed, integral part of the family, participating in decisions and helping to raise their grandchildren. Now many aged persons are isolated from their families, living alone or in a senior home of some sort, uninvolved with the daily lives of their progeny. What a loss for both sides.
Everyone, no matter what age, needs to be needed. Once you’re thought of as not relevant, your opinion of no consequence, you withdraw and (often sullenly) accept the way you’re being treated as deserved. Maybe that’s why so many seniors seem to be so cranky—they’re simply tired of being everyone’s afterthought. It must be very difficult to be the head of a family, a boss at work and yet gradually find your opinion and decision- making ability questioned or, worse, no longer sought.
In today’s world, a person’s social status, or just plain worth to society in general, seems to revolve around their occupation. What industry do you work in? What’s your experience? What’s your expertise? What’s your job title and how much do you earn? Since older folks are often encouraged to retire at a certain age and rarely hired for any meaningful work once past a certain age, they lose their value—not just to society but also to themselves—and they fade into the background. Think of all the intellectual capital that’s just sitting on the sidelines no longer in the game. How about the institutional memory that’s lost when companies decide the bottom line needs enhancing and institute buyouts—and the only eligible employees for the early retirement buyout are workers over age 55.
Times could be changing, though. Over the next few decades as the boomers retire, there will be a shortage of qualified help. There simply aren’t enough people in the ensuing generations to fill projected employment needs. As this happens, you’ll probably see many retirees lured back into the workforce, or cajoled into not retiring in the first place in order to fill critical skill shortages at their company. Even if this repatriation back into the workforce happens on a part-time or project-by-project basis, it will utilize skills honed over a lifetime. And the winners won’t be only the older workers but the companies themselves.
That’s it for now. Enjoy this month’s magazine.
