We all need to be prepared for change

I started this month s feature story with an entirely different concept, based upon a press release I d received in early March. It indicated baby boomers were actually faring better in the unemployment picture during this economic downturn. The line that caught my eye was this: The share of older Americans over 55 years of age who have jobs has risen during the recession, while the share of younger Americans with jobs has plunged, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. I set up an interview with the principals behind the piece, Joan Strewler-Carter and Stephen Carter, co- authors of What s Next In Your Life - How to Find Meaning Beyond the Money and founders of the Life Options Institute. We had a nice chat on March 3 in which the Carters told me they themselves were surprised by the statistics they were seeing. Because they are making significantly higher salaries you would think they would be more vunerable during times of layoffs and what we re seeing is not the case, Joan Strewler-Carter told PRIME. The Carters suggested that this retention was based upon the knowledge and skills the boomer generation brought to the workplace, their willingness to embrace new technology and their flexibility, especially those who were nearing retirement. Then contradictory reports started crossing my desk. I saw numbers from a January 2009 piece by AARP stating 4.9 percent of the (then) 7.2 percent unemployment figure was made up of workers 55 and older. On March 10, ABC News ran a piece on their Web site indicating that companies were cutting older workers with high salaries and pricey health benefits packages and replacing them with lower-wage-and-benefits workers fresh out of college. Then I met career counselor Jeff Doff while working on a story for our weekly newspapers, and the feature took a new direction. And though this month s feature was written with the older jobseeker in mind, the advice applies across the spectrum, from the teen looking to get a foot in the door to a college grad seeking that first job to someone who just found themselves downsized. We all have to be prepared for change, and to market ourselves effectively in today s work environment. Nobody knows that better than me. After all, I work for a print newspaper. Debbie Gardner PRIME Editor