by Judith Whitehead

Created on: July 26, 2010   Last Updated: July 27, 2010

Our Changing World in the Workforce Today

This Spring I had the opportunity to do a little traveling and had the chance to visit some hotels on the East coast as well as the West coast.  One common thread amongst all the places really stood out;  I began to notice more than ever before, the number of “senior” workers that were filling a  larger portion of positions in the workforce.  One woman in particular really left an impression on myself and husband.  We met Sophia in a fine hotel in Boston Mass.  working as a waitress.  We are early risers  and Sophia worked the early shift starting at 6am.  One look at her told a tale of lifelong hard work and as we spoke to her we learned that she was a fixture in the hotel, starting her position when the hotel was built back 30 years ago.  She woke up early to catch the train into Boston every day and found it still necessary to continue to work in our fragile economy.  Now well into her 80’s she continued to support herself in this way and the hotel felt fortunate to have such a dedicated employee. 

The work force is changing greatly and we now find that seniors are forced to work to support themselves in view of our economy that is out of control today.  My husband and I are among those baby boomers that still need to work and find that the interview process has changed drastically. A seasoned worker was always to be valued and we found in the past that it was fairly easy to stay gainfully employed;  not  the case today.   Value and experience are being exchanged for youth and inexperience because it is an employers’ market these days.  A young person just out of school demands a much lower salary and experience is being tossed by the wayside.  What the employers fail to understand until they have hired these youngsters is that many young people don’t have the work ethic that a seasoned one does.   Companies no longer feel any loyalty to their staff and a person that has given more than 100% of themselves for several years can expect next to no job security any longer. My husband and I were raised with the ethic that hard work is rewarded with loyalty; not the case today.   

My husband has fulfilled the position of self employed consultant   which seems to suit many employers these days; no benefits, just employment as long as the assignment dictates.  Trying

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