I Brake For Boomers In The Workplace....

Sometimes - just sometimes - it seems like within the recruiting industry we all turn into Chicken Little.   It's like a 100 million little chicks running around chirping "The sky is falling! The sky is falling! The Boomer's are leaving and Generation Y is upon us - what will we do?!?"

I've been reading a lot of stats lately on Generation Y and how influential they're going to be on our workforce and blah, blah, blah.  Most recently in the Washington Post Magazine, there was a front page feature titled "The Coveted".  No quibbles with the WP - they were spot on in the article, and the lengths that employers will go to secure top Gen Y candidates is amazing!  To be quite honest, I truly enjoy my Generation Y cohorts in the workplace - they bring a lot of value.  But am I ready to put the Boomers out to pasture?  Not quite.

I'm feeling quite skeptical about the concept that we are immediately replacing the Baby Boomer generation and that we need to be in a panic about it!  And apparently I'm not the only one not ready to jump on this bandwagon.  First of all, take a look around at the economy - how many people are saying it's a great time to retire?  No, they're hanging onto their jobs, stability and most importantly, benefits.  According to the Herman Trend Alert for June 11th, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics recently released data that suggested unemployment is the highest it's been since October 2004.  The Herman Trend Alert also says, "....that employers are holding on to their skilled, experienced workers and those with lower skill levels are considered more expendable and easier to hire back--as employees or contractors--when conditions improve."

So there's an interesting thought - these Boomers have a wealth of experience - you need that in your workforce!  Truly you do - as much as you need incredibly tech savvy whiz kids, you do need the senior staff - for a variety of reasons.

So - you want Boomers, and you're trying to figure out how to attract them?  You're going to have to expand your search beyond your Generation Y targets on line, check out these stats from JWT to get a better handle on your Boomer audience.    Using Viewzi.com I found these great sites the other day that specifically target this demographic:

Retiredbrains.com Workforce50.com 2young2retire.com seniors4hire.org retireeworkforce.com Retirementjobs.com Yourencore.com Execsearchs.com Dinosaurexchange.com Jobs4point0.com  ThePhoenixLink.com Seniorjobbank.com

Let's allow the Boomers to fade into the sunset when they're ready to go, and not bum rush them out the door.  They're still going to be heavy consumers in our economy, and we'll need them to spend their cash to get us all out of the current state of affairs economically - and you'll need their insight to keep your company in touch with their demographic.

And remember - age is a part of diversity too!!

Editor's Note - Kelly Dingee is a Technical Writer/Sourcing Researcher for AIRS. Prior to joining AIRS, her experience includes sourcing for Thales Communications, Inc., and internet recruitment for Acterna (now known as JDSU).  For her next post, Kelly's exploring the trend to discount red-headed candidates in the recruitment process....

Comments

[Michael Homula]

Great post this morning Kelly. I completely agree that many recruiters are writing off the boomers WAY too soon. The current economic conditions alone ought to tell us all we need to know about whether or not they are going to "go to pasture" as you call it. Love the imagery there by the way.

All that said, I am still of the opinion that our economic woes are short term and that the real trouble for recruiting in America as it relates to the boomers leaving the workplace is yet to come. I contend that 2010 will be the first wave of trouble with about a 3-5 year window thereafter where we are going to have to get very creative and aggressive in our recruiting tactics. Sure, the boomers are not all going to go out at the same time but I believe this is the calm before the storm.

I guess you can call me chicken little but honestly I am not all that fearful of this possibility. I think it will be a time of great change, for the better, in our industry.

[Kelly Dingee]

Thanks Michael.......I do think the boomers will leave....just not as quickly as some people think....like your thoughts on when the next big wave will hit. I think how the election pans out this year will definitely impact that concept of a talent crunch around 2010 and beyond....

Kelly

[Stephanie T.]

I really enjoy reading this blog. I'm new to HR and so this is a great resource for me.

I loved this article! As a Gen Y, I've been reading a lot of articles related to our group entering the workforce. And it seems in every article or blog I read, it mentions how boomers are going to be heading out in waves. I completely agree that with the market, this isn't going to be happening like many professionals have predicted. And they are a fantastic asset, not only to the company, but to the Gen Ys entering the workforce. I've learned so much from the boomers. Their knowledge is invaluable. I hope more Gen Ys, as well as others, understand the importance of that knowledge.

[Catherine]

Maybe I'm missing something ... but, did Gen X disappear off the planet? Why are they always forgotten?

[Kelly Dingee]

Hi Catherine -

I'm with you - I'm Gen X and sandwiched in between the boomers and the ever present Gen Y and I see Gen Z nipping at everyone's heels - and if my own kids are any indication - look out because they're going to blow everyone away!

So many of the articles I've read that describes Gen X now refers to our Generation as the group that goes along, accepts the rules and are in sort of the land of middle management. Willing to work the hours and do the time to earn the promotions, etc. But perhaps we'll be bypassed at some point because we're willing to go along with the standards......

Personally - I don't fit that mold, not by my career choice or the virtual environment I work in or what I find rewarding in my career.........

Kelly

[KD]

Kelly -

Good post - here's my question - do you find it harder to source Boomer candidates since they lag on technology? When I think about many boomers I know, they are "off the grid" compared to X and Y.....

KD

[Art Koff]

Kelly-
At RetiredBrains.com we are finding more and more employers are hiring older workers for temporary and project assignments as they don't have to pay benefits in most cases. Some boomers who have lost their jobs have been working these project assignments for quite a while now and a number of them have become valuable to their employer and have been hired on a permanent basis. Project based work is an excellent way to get a full-time job and should not be rejected out of hand. Also it gives the employer and opportunity to see the value of the prospective employee prior to on-boarding.

[HR Wench]

Kelly - The second link is broken :( I have the same issue with track backs. Someone tell me what I'm doing wrong!!

I agree that the whole "Boomers are OUT" thing is massively premature. But I also think the "Gen Y is SO GREAT" thing is blown way out of proportion as well. Bottom line, there are stellar candidates across all generations.

[Ann Fry]

I love this article. I couldn't agree more. We don't need to panic about all the boomers leaving; however if they start retiring in droves, many companies would tank. Consider -- most CEOs are boomers too.
The thing for companies to consider is how to best utilize their boomers in innovative ways -- to keep them happy, productive AND to allow them to mentor the Gen. Xers. There are many ways to do this. It's a win/win idea.

[Kelly Dingee]

Wow! So many comments - let me respond:

KD - The boomers are online......at least the ones who are interested in working are! I would be using multiple sites to find them, professional networking, social networking, associations, organizations like AARP, charitable groups, etc. I would think Alumni groups would be stellar places to dig into as well - then you'd be able to narrow your search to a particular group (40+) estimating graduation dates.

HRWench -will see if I can locate the original link for you - will tweet on Monday.

Kelly

[Wally Bock]

Great post Kelly. Let's consider two other facts. First, even if the Boomers all left "on time" that leaving would be spread over two decades. I'm 62, the front edge of the Boomer generation, there's twenty years worth behind me, some firmly at mid-career.

The other point is that there's another generation in there, Gen X. They're moving along the age scale two and there's a bunch of them between the tail of the boom and the head of the Y generation.