1. Congratulations to the 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers!!!
And to everyone working to be a Best Company
I know what it takes to be a 100 Best Company.
And the hallmark of a best company is that you keep looking for the next big thing to support your employees and earn this accolade.
I’ve always said that working mothers were the ice breakers, paving the way for all the other employee segments.
Now we have the a huge cohort that needs the same kind of attention that working mothers needed 32 years ago when we launched this list.

2. The Silver Tsunami
From now until 2029, 10,000 Boomers a day or 40 million people turned and will turn 65.
That’s the equivalent of the population of California.
We are facing a Silver Tsunami of baby boomers retiring from the workforce.
From now until 2029, 10,000 Boomers a day turned and will turn 65. That’s 40 million people -- the equivalent of the population of California. But Instead of thinking of the Silver Tsunami as a threat, think of it as an opportunity.

3. The New Longevity 1935 2018 Retirement Age Set at 65
Retirement Age Still Set at 65
Avg. Life Expectancy Was 58
Average Life Expectancy Is 77
Do you know when our current retirement age was set?
In 1935, when in the depth of the depression FDR created social security. Life expectancy at the time was only 58.
Today, The retirement age is still set at 65, but life expectancy for men is now 77 and for women its 81. There are 87,000 centenarians-100 year olds--living in the US--and that figure will rise to 2-3 million in the next decade.
But we are not just living longer, we are living healthier and being more productive than at anytime in history. The new longevity that science and medicine has given to us presents a whole host of questions about how we will shape society with this new reality.

4. Tightest Labor Market in Decades
“U.S. Unemployment Rate Drops To 3.7 Percent, Lowest In Nearly 50 Years” －NPR
“Employers are howling for more immigration because they don’t have enough workers.” －National Review
“There are more available jobs now than any time since 2000.” －SHRM
One key factor for you to consider is the current labor market. You are facing the tightest labor market in decades.
NPR declares: U.S. Unemployment Rate Drops To 3.7 Percent, Lowest In Nearly 50 Years The National Review, says,
“Employers are howling for more immigration because they don’t enough workers.” and SHRM gives this data point: “There are more available jobs now than any time since 2000.”
But that’s the silver lining of the silver Tsunami.

5. Your New Talent Pool Institutional Knowledge Emotional Intelligence
Strong Business Relationships
Low Attrition
Fewer Sick Days
Great Mentors
The solution is right there in your own workforce. Aging workers are your new talent pool!
And it’s a deep, rich pool, full of promise for companies that catch this wave.
Consider: Older employees have decades of experience leading to institutional knowledge They have high Emotional intelligence, thanks to that experience They’ve cultivated business relationships over decades They’re loyal, bringing your attrition levels down. Believe it or not, they take less sick days than their millennial counter parts And in this time when everyone is clamoring for professional development, these older workers are great mentors who want to give back.
So how do you jump into this pool? By implementing a thoughtful process to maximize the potential of this talent pool.
Respectful Exits has developed a 5 point recommendation that we call on you to adopt as your next step in being a Best Company.

6. Respectful Exits Longevity Agenda
1. End the 65 “Sell-by” Date
Milk Curdles. People Don’t.
We call it the Longevity Agenda.
Number One in our Longevity Agenda is to get rid of the assumed and outdated “SELL-BY” Date of age 65. We like to say, “Milk Curdles. People Don’t.”

7. Respectful Exits Longevity Agenda
2. Develop and Train Your Aging
Workers
Reported Tech-Related Stress at Work:
- 33% for workers under 44
- 25% for workers 55+
Source: Dropbox Survey
Number 2. Develop and Train Your Aging workers. Older workers have been keeping up with the 18 month cycle of technology change since Moore invented Moore’s Law. Embrace that capacity for change. A survey released in June from Dropbox found that older workers adopted technology as quickly as younger workers, but the kicker is they felt less stress about it. In the US, 33% of workers under 44 reported tech- related stress compared to only 25% of workers 55+.

8. Respectful Exits Longevity Agenda
3. Offer Flex Customized for Aging
Workers
Check Your Flex Culture:
Does it Work for Aging Workers’ Needs?
Number 3. Provide Flex Customized for Aging Workers
Aging workers want to use flex for caring for their own parents, a spouse or grandchildren. They may want to ease up on their commute or work part time. It’s as individual as flex for working parents. A truly robust flex program for all workers should accommodate aging workers--have you checked to see if your aging employees are satisfied with your flex culture?

9. Respectful Exits Longevity Agenda
4. Provide Financial Wellness
Counseling
Half of all workers age have less than $14,000 in savings.
Let’s Protect the Spending Power of Boomers.
4. Provide Financial Wellness Counseling
With the new longevity older workers need to plan for much longer retirements. Baby boomers have been the greatest consumers of all times and our economy relies in their spending power. But they can’t spend what they don’t have.
50% of workers age have less that $14,000 in savings. And that needs to last them 20 years. We have to make changes. Careful counseling every year for every employee is needed.

10. Respectful Exits Longevity Agenda
5. Implement Phased Retirement
2 out of 3 workers age 55+ want to work longer.
Only 5% of companies have formal phased
retirement programs.
5. Implement phased retirement
With phased retirement, companies are better prepared for succession planning and knowledge transfer and build a cadre of highly loyal employees. Just like we worked to get the great maternity leaves you all offer and instituted phase back from parental leave, now is the time for every company to adopt phased retirement which allows employees to ease into retirement instead of going off a cliff.
When you follow the Longevity Agenda your older workers will reward you with a rich and deep talent pool.

11. Aging Workers: Your Exciting New Talent Pool
With The Longevity Agenda, companies can support their older workers so that those who want to and need to work longer can do just that. The silver tsunami becomes your talent pool. Just as we created support for working mothers so that valuable cohort could stay in the workforce, now we can create support for older workers who want to be vibrant contributors. Aging workers are an exciting new talent pool in our global workforce.

12. Join the Movement! Paul Rupert prupert@respectfulexits.org Carol Evans