Study finds more older Americans working

Study finds more older Americans working
[20 September 2006 - Reuters] The number of older Americans in the work force hit a record high last month, and employment in that age group has grown faster than any other, according to research released on Wednesday. Working Americans age 55 or older numbered 24.6 million in August, the highest number ever recorded, according to analysis of federal employment data by workplace consultants Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. That marked a jump of more than 1 million full- or part-time older workers from a year earlier, the study showed. "I think it's a surprise to most people just how large the work force of those over 55 has grown," said John Challenger, chief executive officer of the Chicago-based company, a leading expert in business and employment trends. "There's a change going on, and the numbers bear it out." ... "Rather than a falling-off-the-cliff kind of retirement, we now have many more ways for people to stay in the work force and a different kind of balance between work and home," he said. "The system has changed to create much more openness to older workers." More

America not ready for aging boomers

America not ready for aging boomers
[28 September 2006 - United Press International] Fewer than half of American communities are ready to provide health and lifestyle services for the aging population, according to a national study released Wednesday. The study, "The Maturing of America -- Getting Communities on Track for an Aging Population," surveyed 10,000 local U.S. governments to determine their "aging readiness." The report also provided recommendations for communities on how best to provide for an elderly population. The baby boom generation -- born between 1946 and 1964 -- is reaching retirement age. The demographic event has been dubbed the "silver tsunami" by some commentators. In 2000 there were 35 million Americans over the age of 65. By 2030 it is predicted that this figure will have doubled. One in five Americans will be senior citizens. "Given that the first of the baby boomers turned 60 this year, now is really the time for the nation and its communities to ensure that they are age-ready," said Sibyl Jacobson, president and chief executive officer of MetLife Foundation, at a news conference Wednesday. More

Saving the aging brain: Stimulation, exercise help to fight dementia

Saving the aging brain: Stimulation, exercise help to fight dementia
[28 September 2006 - The Orange County Register] A growing body of research suggests that a balanced, healthy lifestyle – including physical and mental exercise – can help delay the onset. More

Training For Older Returners

Training For Older Returners
[29 September 2006 - TrainingZone (UK)] As the new age discrimination laws start to bite, and the retirement brain drain continues to suck grey matter out of the workplace, corporate Britain is increasingly mindful of the issues surrounding employing older people. More

Aging Boomers Overtax Many Towns, Report Says

Aging Boomers Overtax Many Towns, Report Says
[27 September 2006 - NPR Morning Edition] Many communities across the nation aren't prepared to deal with the future health and safety needs of aging baby boomers, according to a study sponsored by the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging. More

Living by Design: Creative guru Michael Graves turns his attention to improving home health products. This time it’s personal.
[September 2006 - AARP Bulletin] For internationally renowned architect and designer Michael Graves, bad design is painful. Seriously. Three years ago, Graves lay on a gurney in an ambulance bay in Princeton, N.J., waiting to be transferred to a hospital in Manhattan. He'd been in excruciating pain all night and could no longer feel his legs. Still, he tells people, his only thought was, "I don't want to die here, because it's so ugly." More

Art for young and old

Art for young and old
[14 September 2006 - The Jerusalem Post] With the Gil Pensioners party's surprising swing into public service, the life of senior citizens in Israel seems to be in the process of positive change. This was apparent at the opening of Art of Aging, a photography exhibit focusing on images of seniors in Israeli life currently on display at the Jerusalem Theater. Sponsored jointly by Eshel, an organization that provides services and programming for Israel's seniors, the Joint Distribution Committee and Reshet television, last week's event provided a forum for the seemingly unlikely connection between avant-garde artists and Israel's elderly community, as young photographers were awarded prizes for their original work depicting senior life. On hand to distribute the prizes and officially introduce the exhibit was leader of the Gil party, MK Rafi Eitan, wearing his trademark - and perhaps unwittingly arty - black glasses. He spoke passionately about the struggle to ensure quality of life for seniors in Israel, acknowledging that he only recently became acquainted with the artistic strides within the senior community. He also mentioned the importance of staying active in the lives of all people - including the elderly. ... For Anat Wolfson, who works in research and production for Eshel and is pursuing her MA in gerontology at Haifa University, visual art about aging is a powerful tool for social change. More

What a boomer wants: Housing, community trends emerge for baby boomer generation

What a boomer wants: Housing, community trends emerge for baby boomer generation
[14 September 2006 - MarketWatch] The country's more than 77 million baby boomers represent more than a quarter of the U.S. population and have a substantial build up of spending power. As more of them move toward retirement age, businesses are paying attention to what this generation's real estate needs are. And if they learn anything about the boomer consumers, it's to not classify them as over the hill. "Don't call them aging, don't call them seniors and certainly don't offer them early-bird specials," said Neale Redington, national director of hospitality practice at Deloitte & Touche LLP. They don't like it, he said. For good reason.
After all, this is a generation that expects to work past the traditional retirement age, said Paul D. Prescott, the national director for Deloitte Tax LLP's home-building sector. It's also a generation with active, healthy lifestyles that are in turn helping them live longer.
Deloitte's recent conference call, "The Aging Population: The Impact on the U.S. Real Estate Market," aimed to give some perspective on what this generation wants from its homes, communities and vacation spots. More

Would more work be good for you?

Would more work be good for you?
[18 September 2006 - BBC] When the new law against age discrimination comes into effect on 1 October it could bring a dramatic opportunity for millions of workers. Those whose employers stipulate a retirement age of 60 will now find they can work on until at least 65. If their employer does not like that idea they will have to come up with a very good reason - not related to age - to justify the enforced retirement. The government hopes that people will take advantage of the new law to work for a few more years and help ease the burden on their pension schemes. More

How UK 'turned its back' on older workers

How UK 'turned its back' on older workers
[18 September 2006 - BBC] Lose your job after the age of 50 - or even 40 in some industries - and you may have a fight on your hands to find a new one. ... Stories are legion of older workers leaving employment never to return. In fact, according to official figures, some 2.8 million people over the age of 45 are without paid work in the UK. All this despite longer lives, an ageing population, a tight labour market and, from 1 October, the introduction of new laws to combat age discrimination in the workplace. More

EU misses goal on getting more people into work

EU misses goal on getting more people into work
[12 September 2006 - Euro Observer] The EU has failed to meet a key target set in 2001 to increase the number of people with jobs in order to meet the challenge of an ageing society, new Eurostat figures have revealed. More

At New Rentals, the Aim Is to Age With Creativity

At New Rentals, the Aim Is to Age With Creativity
[10 September 2006 - New York Times] As hairdresser to the stars, Connie Nichols, an 86-year-old retiree (Apt. 225), has been on intimate terms with Olivia de Havilland’s hair, Ethel Merman’s hair, Doris Day’s hair and Natalie Wood’s hair, which she spritzed for her wedding to Robert Wagner. Ms. Nichols’s latest leading lady is her downstairs neighbor, Helen Miller (Apt. 125), who is starring, at 81, in “Bandida,” a new comedy about an old woman who robs a convenience store. The movie was written by Suzanne Knode (Apt. 406), who was inspired to take up screenwriting at 63 after moving into the Burbank Senior Artists Colony, the country’s first apartment community for creative older people — a sort of “Golden Girls” meets Yaddo. “To expose myself artistically was terrifying, especially at my age” said Ms. Knode, whose past credits include raising two children as a single mother in Boston. “But it was safe here. It was gentle. I wasn’t scared.” In a city that worships youth, the colony is the latest spin on late-life living. With the understanding that not everyone wants the old-school model of golf course retirement, the colony offers artful self-expression: a digital film editing laboratory, a theater, drama classes and studios open for inspiration 24 hours a day. This is a place where amateurs discovering their inner Picassos in retirement can commune with working pros like Charlie Schridde, a painter in his 70’s from the “cowboy impressionist” school who resembles the grizzled trappers of his canvases. ... “We’re thinking beyond the problems of aging to its potential,” said Dr. Gene D. Cohen, the director of the Center on Aging, Health and Humanities at the George Washington University Medical Center. “What’s emerging is a very talented group of people who are an under-recognized national resource.” More