Age Works: What Corporate America Must Do to Survive the Graying of the Workforce

The aging of the baby boomers could cause a severe labor shortage--an "economic catastrophe"--and many businesses are unprepared, according to Beverly Goldberg. In Age Works, Goldberg says there are not enough younger workers to replace the mass of retiring baby boomers in the coming decades. If businesses are to succeed amid "this demographic shock wave," they need to adopt a "new social contract" with workers, especially skilled ones. A lot of older workers are currently retiring early because of downsizing and age discrimination, writes Goldberg, vice president of the Century Foundation, a New York think tank. She writes: "Corporate America will be forced to create a work environment that will turn a graying, disillusioned workforce into eager workers. This challenge is enormous." Goldberg points to corporations such as McDonald's and Days Inn that are already creating the sorts of flexible, part-time jobs with benefits and promotion opportunities that attract retirees back to work. She details how Oracle and GTE fill technology jobs with innovative training programs for older workers. Age Works is intriguing reading for business leaders worried about their future staffing needs, as well as for anyone interested in the far-reaching effects of aging baby boomers on the economy as a whole. --Dan Ring