Old people have to fall back on their education for a job
Staff Writer
2011-02-03
.bugnews.bloggieblog.com .
Once they have lost a job, older Americans are more likely than any other age group to remain out of work for 99 weeks or more, as calculated in a new report by the Congressional Research Service.
Among unemployed adults over age 65, one out of eight (12.15%) had faced 99 weeks or more of unemployment, sometimes called very long-term unemployment. For unemployed adults ages 55 and over, 11.51% had spent almost the last two years looking for work, considerably higher than the figure of 6% among unemployed workers under age 35.
The report also observes that unemployed black workers were more likely to be out of work for 99 weeks or longer than unemployed white workers. The 99-week mark is significant because it is the current maximum duration of unemployment benefits, although in many states that number is lower.
Older adult unemployment is at a near-record high, double what it was when the recession began in December 2007. Among adults over 65, 6.9% were jobless in December 2010.
"It is urgent that we address the employment needs of millions of frustrated and often desperate older adults and Boomers," said Sandra Y. Nathan, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Economic Security at the National Council on Aging (NCOA), the leading nonprofit service and advocacy organization for older Americans. "Many have seen their savings and housing values badly eroded in the economic downturn and are living in or dangerously near poverty. For them, a job is a lifeline that can help them make ends meet and get them on a pathway to economic security."