Baby Boomer Retirement Attitudes Are Different Than Their Parents

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Baby Boomer Retirement Attitudes Are Different Than Their Parents Shirley Elliott Sociology 1015 Professor Carol Kauppi, Ph.D. Baby Boomer Retirement Attitudes Are Different Than Their Parents Landon Jones coined the term "baby boomer" in his book Great Expectations: America and the Baby Boom Generation. Jones definition of the baby boom generation was post-World War II babies born between 1943 through 1960, when annual births increased over 4,000,000 [ (Jones, 1980) ]. The change in retirement attitudes in the baby boom generation compared to their parents is primarily due to self-fulfillment needs, increased longevity of life, and affordability. The baby boomer’s parents typically experienced a departure from the labor force when they were in their early 60’s (Haas III & Serow, 2002). Baby boomers are not content to leave the workforce because they've hit some predetermined magic age (Landau, 2010). Those of the baby boom generation are expected to change the path of their later years. Experts expect many to work as long as they are physically able and to transition, when possible, into jobs that offer self-fulfillment. “The implications of this coming trend are enormous, thanks to the generation's sheer size: By 2030, the number of adults 65 or older will skyrocket to 72 million, from just over 40 million this year” (Landau, 2010, p. 14). Post-retirement labor force re-entry is becoming a regularly occurring phenomenon. “About two-thirds of the Del Webb Corporation (1996) survey respondents indicated that they expect to continue to work after retirement from their primary career” (Haas III & Serow, 2002, p. 154). There is a forecasted shortage of skilled and unskilled labour expected in the industrialized world in the future which will mean that the baby boom workers experience will be a valuable resource. This will command employers
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