Senior Workers Can Help American Workforce Needs

Although many older Americans want to work, the April 2020 unemployment rate for workers 55 and older rose to 13.6 percent. COVID-19 restrictions and associated layoffs account for some unemployment increase, but so does the lack of employment opportunities among older Americans. A variety of approaches are in place to address this area and to assist older workers in the workplace.

A coexisting challenge in the US is that senior living facility operators struggle to retain a reliable workforce to provide care to their senior residents. Other American industries can also benefit from increasing older workforce opportunities, such as manufacturing and the food service/hospitality industry, where they face labor shortages. Helping older Americans retool skills that address specific market labor shortages solves two problems with one group of workers.

Seeking to Prioritize Older Workers

Senators Bob Casey (D-PA) and Tim Scott (R-SC) may simultaneously solve helping seniors find employment and the senior living industry's challenge of finding and keeping competent workers. The chairman (Casey) and ranking member (Scott) of the Senate Special Committee on Aging have written a letter asking the US Department of Labor to prioritize the support of senior workers. Additionally, the head of the National Council on Aging wants the Department of Labor (DOL) to establish an "Older Workers Bureau."

The Senator's letter asks Labor Secretary Martin Walsh to provide information about how his department is tracking trends in the sorts of jobs senior workers perform and how the department can help older American workers navigate available opportunities. The letter further requests information about the DOL and the Biden administration's collaboration using apprenticeship initiatives and other existing programs to train senior workers with new skills to reenter the workforce. Finally, the Senators seek to understand partnerships between the DOL and the private sector to advance older American worker employment opportunities.

Coordinating Resources for Assistance

A recent Senate Aging Committee hearing entitled "A Changing Workforce: Supporting Older Workers Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic and Beyond" calls for a bureau within the labor department to "look holistically at older worker issues across the federal government" and "identify and coordinate existing federal resources, identify and work to eliminate barriers to working longer, and disseminate promising employment and training practices" according to witness Ramsey Alwin. Alwin is president and CEO of the National Council on Aging (NCOA) and further discussed the need for federal resources to promote public-private partnerships.

Reducing Discrimination of Older Workers

The reintroduction of the Protecting Older Workers Against Discrimination Act on March 22, 2021, is a bipartisan bill seeking to strengthen age discrimination protection and make court justice easier for seniors to obtain. The NCOA also supports the Protect Older Job Applicants Act, which seeks to reinforce and expand the rights of senior workers. Whether this legislation becomes law remains to be seen; however, there is a refocus on the benefits that hiring senior workers bring, not only for the workers themselves but for the market sectors that employ them.

Many older Americans live healthy and productive lives well into their senior years, opting to stay employed as a matter of choice as well as those who do so out of necessity. Drawing from this pool of persons can address workers' shortages and retention problems in senior living facilities and other healthcare sectors. The impetus for those Americans 55 or more who want to work in combination with public-private innovation and updated training could redress labor shortage issues across America.

Although I cannot help seniors in their job search, I do help older Americans with their estate planning and care-related planning needs. If you or a loved one would like to discuss your particular situation in a confidential setting, please give me a call. Please contact McCreary Law Office or call the Jacksonville, FL office at 904-425-9046 or the Houston, TX office at 713-568-8600.