Baby Boomers Still Struggling in Wake of Recession

While the recession has supposedly been over for quite some time, many people are still feeling its effects. And it is quite possible that Baby Boomers are having the hardest time bouncing back.

A recent U.S. News & World Report article examines "The Recession's Impact on Baby Boomer Retirement." Here are some of the key take-away points from the article:

Although the recession affected all age groups, Baby Boomers may not have enough time to rebuild their retirement savings, forcing many to put off retirement or live on a lower retirement income than they expected.
On the other side of the coin, some were forced into early retirement because they were unable to find new employment after losing jobs during the recession.
This has caused household income for those ages 55-64 to fall by 6 percent.

As a result, employers need to be ready for older workers who are either remaining in the workforce longer than expected or who are returning to the workforce on a part-time basis to supplement a less than sufficient retirement income. A recent Staffing Industry Analysts article listed policy issues that employers will have to reexamine in light of this trend. At the top of the list? Offering "more flexible work patterns," including telecommuting, consulting, and reduced hours.

This all plays into the Retiree Re-Staffingtrend we have been reporting on for the past couple of years. By bringing older workers in a on part-time, consulting or contract basis, employers can gain or retain these workers' knowledge, while the workers can supplement their income and remain active on a more flexible basis so they can enjoy other activities and time with family.

Debbie Fledderjohann is the President of Top Echelon Contracting, Inc.

Comment by Valentino Martinez on December 10, 2011 at 4:07pm: Debbie,

Thanks for sharing this article. Baby Boomers are dramatically impacted by this ongoing Recession.

Employers can find great value in retaining or hiring these proven pros.

Comment by John Bennewith on December 12, 2011 at 10:54am: I do agree that baby boomers are affected badly by this recession but I would say that people of this age group especially in the UK who have done reasonably well for themselves in the 80s and 90s who bought property with big gardens who are now developing them into more houses to fund their retirement were extremely lucky. The reason i say this is that people who have done well for themselves who are in their 30s and 40 now have never had the chance to buy property with such plots and therefore will be much worse off in 20 years time than the baby boomers.

Would be very interested in comments on this subject.

Also baby boomers in sales especially in technology used to work on FAT margins which meant FAT pay checks. These margins are not around anymore.