Jobs older workers can do are apparently not going away, even if the ones they are currently doing appear to be becoming less common. Image: somrak jendee/Shutterstock.com
Job prospects for those who wish to extend their working careers into older ages involve both continued ability to perform tasks they now are performing and ability to learn new tasks, says a report from the Center for Retirement Research.
The report noted that while growing shares of workers either want or need to continue working, “Their ability to work longer also depends on whether employers are willing to hire and retain them.”
“Overall, room for tempered optimism exists,” it says. Older workers “may be just as good as younger workers” although they commonly are more expensive, and “while the jobs older workers do today may be less prevalent in the future, other jobs that older workers have the capacity to do should be plentiful.”
In an analysis of job postings targeted toward older workers looking for “bridge” jobs from their main careers into full retirement, it found that salaries tend to be higher than for general job listings, although fewer provide the full benefits often associated with career jobs.
Further, in looking at prior studies of the future demand for older workers, it found a “discouraging” pattern of declining demand for the types of jobs where they are concentrated now. “This negative association exists whether the availability of future jobs is measured absolutely using the projected level in 2030, or as a rate of change between 2020 and 2030,” it said.
However, it said the situation is brighter when looking at the types of jobs older workers could do, looked at either as the numbers of jobs projected for 2030 or by the rate of change. That “suggests that there may not be a mismatch between the jobs older workers are capable of doing and those available in the future. In other words, those jobs older workers can do are apparently not going away, even if the ones they are currently doing appear to be becoming less common.”
“While the specific jobs older workers do today may be less prevalent in the future, our analysis indicates that jobs in occupations that are suitable for older workers are likely to grow at a similar pace as other jobs. So, while older workers may need to change with the times and enter some new occupations, their skills should enable them to do so,” it says.
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