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The aging of the regions’ population will bring profound changes over the coming years.  The over-55 population in Metro Boston is expected to increase by 75% from 2000 to 2030.  If current patterns of labor force participation continue, the retirement of Baby Boomers will deplete the region’s workforce, resulting in labor shortages.  Many older workers are also highly skilled and possess “institutional memory” valuable to their organizations.  As described elsewhere in this strategy, efforts to develop a skilled workforce and increase labor force participation rates will help to mitigate this change.  There are also many things that can be done to support and retain retirement-age workers who wish to keep working.  

The success of public and corporate practices to employ and retain older workers is contingent on a comprehensive understanding of the assets and needs of older workers.  Many older people prefer part-time work so they can enjoy more relaxed lifestyles and pursue leisure activities. Others need flexible schedules to accommodate family care responsibilities or their own physical limitations. Many older people can afford to cut back their work hours only if they have access to employer retirement benefits. Policies that prevent part-time workers from collecting retirement benefits from their current employer often force older workers to leave their career job and work reduced schedules elsewhere, squandering firm-specific skills accumulated over long careers.

Low employment rates at older ages may also result from difficulties matching older job applicants with appropriate employers, or from employer perceptions—real or imagined—that older Americans cannot meet their workforce needs. Some older people may lack the proper mix of skills required in high-growth industries. Some employers may be reluctant to hire older workers because they fear they are too costly or because employers do not appreciate the attributes many older workers embody, including maturity, experience, and dependability.  Many employers cite both compensation—including the rising cost of health insurance—and training costs as obstacles to hiring and retaining older workers. As a result, many employers have not learned to place a high value on their experienced workers, instead gearing their succession planning toward replacing older workers with younger ones.

In addition to improving the economic outlook, working longer can enhance individual well-being. Those who delay retirement can raise their own retirement incomes by avoiding early retirement reductions to their Social Security and defined benefit (DB) pension benefits, accumulating more Social Security and pension credits and other savings, and reducing the number of retirement years that they must fund.

Governments, nonprofit organizations, and educational institutions can promote employment at older ages by training older people, helping them find employment, and combating negative stereotypes about older workers.

There is a wealth of existing research and expertise in Metropolitan Boston to address this issue:  the University of Massachusetts Boston, The AgeLab at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, US Department of Health and Human Services/Administration on Aging, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs (EOEA), and the Massachusetts Association Of Older Americans, Inc.  With support and encouragement from MAPC, EOEA could take a lead role in organizing these entities into an ad hoc group that will identify and collate existing research and identify research specific to metropolitan Boston that is still required.

21)    Develop flexible approaches to part-time work and phased retirement

22)    Re-tool workforce development programs to meet the needs of older workers

23)    Support financial literacy so workers are prepared for retirement

24)    Re-Tool Councils on Aging