Baby boomers: demographic characteristics and social impact

Baby Boomer Retirement

Economic impact of the impending Baby Boomer Retirement

Within the next two decades, the largest segment of the American population will be retiring, leaving a huge void in America's workforce, as well as creating the largest single pull on the struggling Social Security system that America has ever sncountered. According to Dailey (1998) over one third of the American population is composed of this generation. What will be the effects of pulling this group of productive American workers out of the wealth producing sector of our economy, and transferring them to the non-working sector? The American economy, which has reoriented itself to an information economy rather than a manufacturing-based economy may face pressures to adapt further as it relied on less professional, executive leadership which has been provided by the Baby Boomers, and has to learn to rely on Gen X and Gen Y citizens in order to form a cohesive and reliable economic balance.

According to Freedman, Roma and Harris, (1999) There are now five times as many older adults as there were when Social Security was introduced in the mid-1930s, and ten times as many Americans over 65 as there were in 1900. The major force driving these numbers is the dramatic growth in longevity, alongside reductions in infant and child mortality. In 1900, the average American could anticipate living to age 47. Today the figure is 76, with continued increases into the 80s anticipated by the middle of the twenty-first century. The addition of three decades to the average life span is surely one of the great wonders of the twentieth century. That change amounts to a 62% increase in the number of our days. As a result, an American woman reaching age 65 today can plan on living nearly twenty more years, while men can expect more than a decade and a half of continued life -- most of it in reasonably good health. Demographic expert Chulhee Lee of the University of California, Berkeley, has projected that the average man aged 20 in 1990 can anticipate spending one-third of life in retirement.

As remarkable as these numbers are, the real revolution is yet to be felt. Beginning just after the year 2000, the first wave of 80 million baby boomers will reach their late fifties and begin transforming America into a place where, for the first time ever, there will be more older adults than children and youth. By 2030, the number of older adults will have doubled again, to 70 million

As the oldest baby-boomers begin retiring in the approaching years, the implications for the workforce could be enormous. According to Dohm, "the current tight labor markets could be exacerbated, hindering prospects for economic growth and putting a greater burden on those remaining in the workforce, perhaps forcing them to work longer hours." Inh occupations with functions less conducive to technology-driven productivity innovations, such as the health services and educational sectors, service may suffer and needs could go unmet unless older workers can be retained or other sources of 'workers can be found. This impending shift in the American productive populace may be the most significant challenge faced by America in her impressive 200-year lifespan.

Marc Freedman, Alex Harris, Thomas Roma. Prime Time: How Baby Boomers Will Revolutionize Retirement and Transform America. PublicAffairs, 1999. This book examines in depth the retirement trends, the possible effects on employment sectors within the country.

Nancy Dailey. When Baby Boom Women Retire. Greenwood, 1998. Baby Boom women have been a driving force in the marketplace. The feminist movement, which has fought for equal rights for women in the marketplace, is mostly composed of baby boom women. As these women retire, this book investigates the possible changes regarding feminist and womens right pressures in the American marketplace.

Arlene Dohm. Gauging the Labor Force Effects of Retiring Baby-Boomers. Monthly Labor Review, Vol. 123, 2000. This journal article cites facts, and begins to ask the hard questions regarding labor shifts and demands on labor markets as the baby boomers retire over the next 20 years. This article is filled with census data, and curreint statistics

Howard N. Fullerton, Jr., "Labor force projections to 2008: steady growth and changing composition," Monthly Labor Review, November 1999, pp. 19-32; see table 5, p. 27; for age of labor force, see p. 30. A course for tables, chart, and other demographic iformation regardintr the impending baby boom retirement.

"Baby Boomers Envision Their Retirement: An AARP Segmentation Analysis" (American Association of Retired Persons, February 1999), on the Internet at http://www.aarp.org (visited June 2000). The AARP, a leading lobby organization for retired citizens, is looking toward receiving a higher place of influence as the baby boomer generation join their ranks. This article identifies some of the motivations which the boomers will carry into retirement. Understanding the motivations, will aid in preparing for upcoming demands.