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What the numbers say: The percentage of Americans aged 55 and older who are part of the workforce has not returned to pre-pandemic levels. In February, the labor force participation rate for that cohort fell to 38.4%, the lowest since before the 2007-08 financial crisis. Relevance: The percentage of working older Americans increased steadily since 1990. Over roughly 20 years, the proportion increased from ~30% to ~40%. In 2022, there were 20 million more Americans aged 55 and older in the workforce than in 2000. What's next: Despite rapid technological changes and concerns about whether AI will destroy millions of jobs, employment data suggests that the U.S. economy will continue to depend heavily on older workers. In 2021, the Labor Department projected that the number of Americans aged 75 and older who are still working will almost double by 2030. That's in part because the U.S. population is aging rapidly. By 2050 people over 65 are expected to account for nearly 22% of the country’s population, up from around 17% in 2020. |
