Age Discrimination and Mandatory Retirement free essay sample

Age Discrimination and Mandatory Retirement Joyce Cook The mandatory retirement age controversy should be re-examined and redefined further. Baby boomers are very different from their predecessors; they are living longer, maintain lifestyles that are more active and are generally better able to continue working than in the past. The real challenge is the reality of how the insufficient number of young people will fill the vacancies left by the aging workforce. Mandatory retirement may be unavoidable, as older workers are forced from the work field to create more vacancies for new younger employees.According to most seniors, it is an unfair practice and does not take into account if the person wants to retire; it also does not take into account the mental and physical capabilities or financial position of the person. Not a popular subject by most studies, often it has some effect on many elderly baby boomers plans on how they retire. We will write a custom essay sample on Age Discrimination and Mandatory Retirement or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Since it involves less than 1 percent of the working population, retirement only opens a small fraction of the total jobs and affects a tiny portion of the population.There is no need to force retirement to create vacancies; most workers retire voluntarily, and still do so even though mandatory retirement is outlawed in most of the United States. Critics for mandatory retirement of pilots at age 60, worry that safety may be compromised, since pilots in their 60’s may find it tougher to battle fatigue or rebound from jet lag than younger colleagues. The Air Line Pilots Association, (ALPA) and the Allied Pilots Association, (APA) has long been supportive of the â€Å"age 60 rule†.In 1950, there was one elderly person to every seven workers. In the year 2000, the ratio was one in five and projected to increase to one in three in 2050. With the impending retirement of the baby boom generation, employers face the loss of many experienced workers and quite possibly skill gap s in certain occupations. This could have an adverse effect on productivity and economic growth. Furthermore, the expected increased ratio of the elderly to those of working ages will place added stress on Social Security and Medicare both of which face long-term financial problems.What most employers do not consider is that the work environment can be adapted to accommodate the needs of the rising population of baby boomers. In addition, to accommodate the changing abilities of older workers, employers need to re-design the job as well. Instead of having to hire new younger workers who are not as skilled or trained in the job, there is a chance it would benefit employers to accommodate older workers’ needs. Functionality and not chronological age must become the prime criteria in all employment practices.As baby boomers exit the work force, letting people work longer could help to curb a predicted skilled and experienced labor shortage in many occupations. Employers need to revise human resource plans to reflect the possibility of more employees working past their previously expected retirement date as well as change testing and performance evaluations to reflect the reality of an aging workforce. Organizations need to develop programs to maximize the contributions of older workers, particularly in the areas of adult learning and flexible work arrangements; it may encourage older workers who wish to continue working.Labor force participation rates of older ages has been on the rise slightly since 1970 and is projected to rise more in the coming years. Couple slow labor force growth with an aging population and it poses serious economic and fiscal challenges to America in the 21st century. Policies that encourage those older workers who want to continue doing so that remove work deterrents for this age group would ease the problem. Perhaps increasing the labor force with people who are able to work longer may be one part of the solutio n to this problem.