Aged and the Workforce

Improvements in health care and quality of life have led to a marked ageing of the world's population. This volume addresses the occupational health issues that might arise from this ageing.

Sicker examines the realities and uncertainties the aging American work force will face in the employment environment of the 21st century in the light of the major restructuring of business operations and the world of work that has taken place in the final decades of the last century.

Preface I: Introduction Prospects for Older Worders: The Demographic and Economic Context by Steven H. Sandell Labor Market Problems and Employment Policies Affecting Older Americans by Steven H. Sandell II: Labor Market Problems The Reduced Pay of Older Job Losers: Age Discrimination and Other Explanations by David Shapiro and Steven H. Sandell Age Changes in Productivity and Earnings Among Managers and Professionals by Paul Andirsani Market for Part-Time Employment by Jim Jondrow, Frank Brechling, and Alan Marcus Older Workers, Job Displacement, and the Employment Service by Terry R. Johnson, Katherine P. Dickinson, and Richard W. West III: Policies and Prospects Government Employment and Training Programs, and Older Americans by Kalman Rupp, Edward Bryant, Richard Mantovani, and Michael Rhoads Increasing Employment Opportunities for Older Workers: Emerging State and Local Institutions by James O. Gollub Work Alternatives for Older Americans: A Management Perspective by Carolyn Paul Private-Sector Employment Practices for Older Workers by Lawrence S. Root and Laura H. Zarrugh Restructuring Social Security: How Will Retirement Ages Respond? by Gary S. Fields and Olivia S. Mitchell Health Plan Costs, Medicare, and Employment of Older Workers by Joseph M. Anderson, David L. Kennell, and John F. Sheils Retirement and Older Americans' Participation in Volunteer Acitivities by Carol Jusenius Romero IV: Conclusions The Problem Isn't Age: Conclusions and Implications by Steven H. Sandell Selected Bibliography Index

Age is currently the subject of research as a pressing social concern on a scale previously unimaginable in the social sciences and caring professions. The inexorable development of the age pyramid and the quick pace of technological change has brought work and age together as crucially interlinked areas of study and intervention.

Thought-provoking analysis of the graying of the American workforceLooks at issues of aging and new technology reflected in business and in popular entertainmentAsks whether older workers are benefiting from new technologies

Bass and his colleagues focus needed attention on the majority of older people who, in their senior years, possess relatively good health and demonstrated abilities. They offer significant potential to society, affording a resource that only in relatively recent times, has been largely unrecognized or ignored. Major issues and obstacles are identified and addressed. These include considerations relative to employment, workplace environment, volunteerism, gender, and ethnic culture. The authors examine roles, both social and economic, which older people can successfully fulfill. They urge a broadening of the options available to us as we age that extend beyond leisure activities and family involvement. They recognize the need for changes in perceptions and the necessary modification of society's institutions to enable choice and greater satisfaction in the later years of life.

This text employs a communication perspective to examine the aging process and the ability of individuals to adapt successfully to aging. It continues the groundbreaking work of the first edition, emphasizing a life-span approach toward understanding the social interaction that occurs during later life. The edition provides a comprehensive update on the existing and emerging research within communication and aging studies and considers such topics as notions of successful aging, positive and negative stereotypes toward older adults, and health communication issues. It raises awareness of the barriers facing elderly people in conversation and the importance such conversations have in elderly people's lives. The impact of nonrelational processes, such as hearing loss, are considered as they impact relationships with others and affect the ability to age successfully. The book is organized into 14 chapters. Each chapter is written so that the reader is presented with an exhaustive review of the pertinent and recent literature from the social sciences. As in the first edition, when the literature is empirically based, the communicative ramifications are then discussed. Readers of this volume will gain greater understanding of the importance of their communicative relationships and how significant they remain across the life span. Developed for students in communication, psychology, nursing, social gerontology, sociology, and related areas, Communication and Aging provides important insights on communication to all who are affected by the aging process.