On January 1, 2011, the first Baby Boomers turned 65 years old . Every day since, 10,000 Boomers have turned 65. This will continue for the next 14 years.
And then, one December night in 2029, the very last Baby Boomer will reach that once traditional retirement age. And if he or she is employed, he or she may think like many Boomers before: “Well, I’m not retiring just yet .”
In a 2014 Gallup poll, approximately half of Boomers reported that they were not planning on retiring until well past the age of 65. In fact, 1 in 10 Boomers said they would never retire .
However, a second poll doesn’t support this data. Even in the post-recession era, Boomers were not staying in the workplace at the high rates previously anticipated . By 67 and 68 years old, only one in three Boomers was still employed.
THE WAITING GAME
So where does that leave the generations behind them, in particular the Millennials?
In the not-too-distant past, Boomer leaders would have continued the trends of their predecessors retiring by 65 and handing over the reins to someone younger, qualified, appropriately trained and adequately prepared to tackle the job. But now, these leaders and their human resources teams report that while there are some Gen Xers with the ability to take the reins of leadership (many of whom already have), it’s that pesky generation behind them that lacks both the interest and skills to become leaders.
READ MORE Legal Management, The Magazine of the Association of Legal Administrators, November 2015