Best Boomer Towns Columns

Coming Soon, Baby Boomers Back in Demand!

By the sheer size of the Baby Boomer generation it impacts everything it encounters.  Now that Baby Boomers are entering their retirement years we’ll never likely think of “retirement” again in quite the same way.  Baby Boomers don’t retire—-they rewire themselves.  Expect this generation to reinvent itself yet again.

The majority of retired American who work now are retail salespersons.  However, Baby Boomers aren’t about to allow their considerable talents to lie fallow.  So don’t expect them to be rushing out for jobs at the hardware store or (god forbid) to be WalMart greeters.  They will find other things to do.

Still, let’s be real.  The people who hire are often younger than the kids Boomers have.  Not a good dynamic.  The saving grace is the considerable talent and experience Boomers bring to the job at a time when it is sorely needed.  Yes!  The kids will need us again!

You’ll be happy to know that a new study by the Urban Institute projects many exciting career opportunities for “seniors” (ouch) in the years to come—-and retail jobs were nowhere to be seen.  Also, these aren’t just pie-in-the-sky projections, most of these jobs already employ large numbers of 55+ age workers. 

They include fields as diverse as veterinarians (there are more than 80 million cats and dogs in the U.S.), financial advisors (we sure need these), and registered nurses (despite their best efforts Boomers will get sick as they age).  The country will need nearly 5 million teachers and nurses alone in the next ten years.  About a million of these will be Baby Boomers.

Of the top-rated industries for Boomers identified by the Urban Institute, all are expected to grow by at least 20% or more by 2016—-twice the rate for the country’s labor force as a whole.  Also, once the current economic crisis passes and things return to normal it’s projected that a labor shortage will occur.  Boomers will find themselves more in demand than any previous “retired” generation.

The traditional concept of retirement is fast changing.  No longer do most retirement- age Americans expect (or want) to sit idle, play endless rounds of golf or lounge around the pool at the local Leisure World.  Boomers like to work.  They want to make a difference.  And they will. The jobs Boomers will fill in the future require experience, education, skills and the ability to work well with people.  Many of the jobs fit Boomers’ new realities and are less physically challenging and available part-time. 

It’s also vital to American economic growth that millions of the most talented and experienced citizens stay involved.  Employed Boomers now comprise almost one-fifth of the work force.  That figure is sure to grow—and help fuel the engine of the world’s greatest economy.  To paraphrase an old saying, what’s good for Boomers is good for the nation.

Listed below in order of projected growth are the 20 Jobs for older workers that the Urban Institute projects will be the “hottest” occupations for Boomers.

                    2007         Projected %           Workers 55+
Employment           10-Year Growth

Personal/home-care aides           794,846           50.7%       23.4%

Personal financial advisors       343,170       40.9%                   18.8%

Veterinarians           66,824   35.5%         22.4%

Social/Community service         340,736     24.6%         24.4%
Managers

Entertainment attendants     163,717 23.8%     21.1%

Surveyors, cartographers,           42,128       23.6%     16.9%
Photogrammetrists

Environmental scientists     102,766       23.6%       20.2%

Registered nurses       2,608,762       23.4%       17.9%

Animal trainers         45,072     23.3%       23.0%

Instructional coordinators   24,165     23.3%           32.0%

Locksmiths (and safe repair)        25,047     23.1%           25.4%

Teachers (post-secondary)         1,357,642     22.8%           27.0%

Archivists, curators and museum     56,396     22.2%           24.7%
technicians

Social workers       728,481     22.2%           17.5%

Management analysts     622,978   22.0%           26.5%

Pharmacists       229,830   21.8%           21.4%

Counselors       707,527   21.4%           18.2%

Business operations specialists 100,367   20.9%         18.8%

Brokerage clerks         3,831   20.5%             29.5%

Religious workers 109,127   20.5%             32.5%

Now is a good time to begin preparing, through additional education or retraining, for some of these jobs.  With life expectancies increasing, you probably have another 20 to 30 working years left—-more time than it took Bill Gates and Steve Jobs to become multi-billionaires.

Eric Wentworth has more than three decades experience in the marketing communications industry.  He is the winner of more than 50 top awards for creativity in advertising and public relations.  Eric is the former owner of three small businesses.  His newest book, “A Plan for Life:  The 10 Decisions That Determine Your Success and Happiness in Life,” will be published during the summer, 2009.  He lives in Northern California and can be reached at 415-516-9342