Despite Warnings, U.S. Companies Remain Unprepared for Baby Boomers' Exodus

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass., Nov. 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- With millions of Baby
Boomers poised to age out of the workforce, U.S. companies remain unprepared
for an imminent talent drain that threatens to alter the national economy,
according to a new report by the Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston
College.

Nearly 70 percent of the almost 700 organizations surveyed do not yet know how
old their workers are or how many are likely to retire. Forty percent
reported that the aging of the workforce will have a detrimental impact on
their businesses by 2012.

"The out-migration of a generation of workers will upset the entire balance of
the workplace," said co-author Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes, director of the Sloan
Center on Aging & Work. "U.S. companies need to start planning strategically
for workforce sustainability. The current abundance of older worker talent and
experience is going to dry up, and businesses will very soon need to fill
hundreds, if not thousands, of jobs."

The report -- The Pressures of Talent Management -- examined talent management
practices at 696 organizations across the 10 leading sectors of the economy.
The companies studied employ more than one million workers combined and
represent businesses that account for roughly 85 percent of the jobs and
payrolls in the U.S.

Additional key findings include:
-- 77 percent of employers surveyed had not analyzed projected employee
retirement rates or assessed employee career plans.
-- 56 percent of these businesses had not assessed the skills their
organizations need today and in the future.

-- About one-third of employers reported not having enough programs for
recruitment or training of older workers.

Though long-predicted, the workforce reduction has generated surprisingly
limited responses. In 2000, Baby Boomers represented the largest portion of
the U.S. labor force, at 48 percent. By 2010, they're projected to shrink to
37 percent of the workforce, leading some economists predict a shortage of
10-15 million workers in the coming decade.

"Workforce planning makes good business sense," said report researcher Stephen
Sweet. "Changing age demographics don't have to disrupt a business -- they may
present new opportunities or competitive advantages. Employers should take
advantage of programs designed to meet the evolving needs of employees nearing
retirement, while at the same time meeting business needs by keeping
experienced talent longer and ensuring business continuity."

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Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes
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SOURCE Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College

Chad Minnich of The Sloan Center on Aging & Work at Boston College,
+1-617-552-3122, minnicch@bc.edu