Some of this is feel good BS for us older people.
I retired early from my profession after 31.5 years 7 years ago. I was only in my mid-50s and I searched for a part time/temporary job and couldn’t even get but 1 interview. And I was looking for entry level jobs etc. I ended up doing my own little part time business as I just simply gave up. (and I’m college educated).
What truths are in this piece are countered by a very real age discrimination culture that exists.
That’s my experience.
There’s another angle to your story that you may be overlooking. Many employers are reluctant to hire someone who has already retired once because they don’t expect you to stay around for very long. This is especially true in any industry where entry-level workers are groomed for long careers.
Cell phones, covid lockdown, and video games.
I once interviewed for a part time job as a pizza delivery guy. At the time I a VP of a large imprinted sportswear company, but I wanted to make some side cash for the holidays.
I could not get hired. One manager was finally honest with me and asked, “How do I know you won’t try to take my job?”
It finally dawned on me…these were incompetent people afraid of losing their jobs.
How many times do they not hire the old white guy because he will do a really good job?
I got laid off in October. I’ve sent out hundreds of resumes and managed 3 interviews. 2 by Zoom and 1 in person. All three hired Gen Z people, 2 of those female.
I sent a resume into the company my old boss works at and followed up with him. He said his HR people never even showed him my resume. Big push on for “equity”.
L
I am a little bit inclined to agree because as a GenX kid I remember that before they called us “GenX” they called us the “Slackers”.
On the other hand, there is something very wrong with the kids. In broad strokes, they are fat, unhealthy, entitled, easily offended, obsessed with computers, and possessed by radical ideas about climate change, leftist economics, etc. I say broad strokes because there are good kids that will do us all proud. I like to think my own, which all fall in the Gen Z range will be among those.
Fifty years of following the food pyramid have been disastrous for health on all generations. This generation AND their parents grew up on it so potential for epigenetic effects. I large proportion of these kids would have been the “fat kid” when I was in school. Obesity and chronic infalmation do a bad number on physical and mental health.
Computers take up an inordinate amount of their attention. I fight this with my own kids wanting to play computer games all the time. My kids are not allowed free access, but most kids have Tictok, Google and Instagram/Facebook constantly feeding dopamine as well through smartphones and every other device. This creates a constant state of distraction that is not conducive to getting work done.
Then there is the ideology rampant in the social media and schools/colleges. Liberals had de facto control of these things when I was young, but they tended to be more restrained and at least pretend to present both sides. Now academia and media are hard left controlled and not only have no pretenses about being unbiased. Schools at all levels are actively biased against anything that doesn’t fit leftist orthodoxy.
The three things that have grown in cost the most as a factor of the economy are college, health care and government. Kids are raised to believe they cannot succeed without college, and they cannot get through that without absorbing and spouting leftism. Health care is so expensive that people keep jobs they are unhappy with so that one trip to the emergency room won’t take away all their savings ad bankrupt them and the only remotely affordable way to get coverage is through employers.
And the government is spending their futures. 7% of GDP is government debt spending. Government employees are like the mandarins of imperial China believing that have the right to rule and that they don’t need to answer to the elected leadership. Ind the leftists have convinced the kids that the incredible and growing burden of regulation is neeeded.
I was born in 1939.
Have accounting background, but did other jobs when Computers were coming online.
Became self employed doing books for small businesses in 1980. Had as many as 19 clients at one time-—employee gross of $69,000 a year to $3.2 million. Mostly one man shops.
Last client retired 2 years ago..I did his books for over 53 years.
He is now 86 I am 84.