AARP Issues Report on Job Training for Older Workers in Alabamat

According to AARP, over the past five years, 59% of Alabama workers age 40 and over have participated in job-related skills training or education programs offered to them by an employer, and 86% of them indicate they personally have not had to pay for that training. These are some of the results of a survey commissioned by AARP to gain a deeper understanding of the perspective, skills, and needs of older workers in the state to better provide them with focused, targeted information and resources.

The full report "Job Skills Training and Opportunities: Opinions and Perceptions of Alabama Workers Age 40+", authored by Jennifer H. Sauer and Cassandra Burton, also finds that 86% of older workers are satisfied with the work-related training opportunities offered through their employers, with 60% saying they are extremely or very satisfied, and another 26% indicating they are somewhat satisfied. Looking forward, 51% said they were extremely or very likely to engage in any job training through their employer over the next five years, but 31% said they were not likely to do so. In addition, 52% did not think that additional job training would help them advance in their job or help get a better job.

On worker attitudes towards employment as they get older, the survey reports that, among all Alabama workers and those looking for work, 40% plan to continue working at their current job either full or part-time when they reach retirement age. "For the majority of respondents, needing or wanting additional income (84%), enjoying work (84%), building up a personal savings (79%), and maintaining health coverage for themselves or their families (72%) are major/minor factors in deciding to work beyond retirement."

Source: AARP Knowledge Management Survey Report (October 2009)

Alabama: Census Bureau Issues Profile of the Older Worker

In a continuation of its partnership with 31 states on a series of reports on workers 55 and older, the Census Bureau has released its report on Alabama, the 29th state to be released in the series. Among the highlights of the report--"The Geographic Distribution and Characteristics of Older Workers in Alabama: 2004":

• 14.2% of workers were 55 and older, while 3.1% were 65 and older;
• statewide, the educational services industry had the highest proportion of or workers 55 and older, with 22.3% or more of its workers in that age group, followed by mining, with 20.6% in that age group; and
• the state's manufacturing industry employed the greatest number of older workers, with about 20.2% of the workers 55 and older being in that sector.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau Longitudinal Employer-Household Dynamics What's New (January 29, 2009)

Survey: Alabama Firms Not Prepared for Retirement

According to a survey of 348 Alabama employers conducted for the AARP, while 95% percent say it is no less than “very important” for their organization to retain skilled employees, only 11% report having taken actions to prepare for the retirement of baby boom workers.

The report--Alabama Survey of Employers’ Practices for Managing An Aging Workforce--found that in order to accommodate workers interested in working beyond normal retirement age, employers were were planning or considering: (1) enabling employees to ease into retirement by reducing their work schedules (49%); (2) hiring retired employees (47%); (3) providing part-time work arrangements without continuation of benefits (45%); and (4) upgrading training (43%).

Source: AARP Policy & Research Research Report (August 2006)

Other Sources: The Huntsville Times "Too few firms in state are planning for retirement" (December 3, 2006); The Montgomery Advertiser Survey: Firms not ready for boomers' exit (December 5, 2006); The Birmingham News "Baby boomers reaching point of mass retirement" (December 1, 2006)