Transcript Expanding Opportunities for Civic Engagement, Employment

Civic Engagement,
Employment and
Volunteerism Opportunities for
Lower Income Seniors
Judith G. Gonyea, PhD
Boston University
Sponsored by Senior Service America Inc
What is our social responsibility in helping all older
citizens achieve a secure and positive old age?
5 CORE COMPONENTS:
 An adequate (post-retirement)
income
 Accessible quality health care
 Appropriate and affordable
housing.
 Supportive relationships/Positive
social connections
 Positive sense of self/Personal
meaning
Indicator 7 - Poverty
Percentage of 65 and older population, living in poverty, 2005
Selected characteristic
Men
Total
Non-Hispanic white alone
Black alone
Asian alone
Hispanic (of any race)
Women
Total
Non-Hispanic white alone
Black alone
Asian alone
Hispanic (of any race)
65 +
65 - 74
75+
7.3
7.0
7.7
5.1
4.7
5.6
20.1
20.3
19.8
13.2
12.0
15.0
17.0
15.1
20.1
12.3
10.5
14.0
10.0
7.9
12.0
25.3
22.7
28.3
12.6
13.9
10.8
22.0
19.7
25.1
Compassionate Ageism

1930s to 1970s: The dominant image of older
Americans was that they were, as a group, poor, frail,
dependent, and as objects of discrimination.

The casting of the America’s oldest citizens as a
homogenous vulnerable group led to a general
consensus that they were a deserving class.

“Compassionate ageism” led to the creation of many
government benefit programs and policies for older
Americans.
The Scapegoating of Older Americans

From the 1980s on, there was a reversal in the
public’s perception of older Americans. Seniors
began to be portrayed as “well off” and a “burden
to society.”

In 1999, the cover of the New Republic had a
drawing of older persons with the words “greedy
geezers” which reflected this new negative
view—a theme that has repeatedly been taken up.
The New Language of Aging




Active Aging
Productive Aging
Successful aging
These images
highlight:




Involvement
Engagement
Mobility
Productivity
A critical question is what happens to
seniors who fall outside these models?

Is our definition of successful/productive/active aging
too narrow?

Does it exclude older adults with disabilities, seniors
living in poverty, and elders with different cultural or
world views?

Are elders who are NOT seen as aging successfully or
productively going to be increasingly stigmatized?
Uneasiness about the Promotion of
Elder Civic Engagement

[it creates] “a powerful master narrative about
how we ought to age and how society ought
to think about its aging members”


Martha Holstein, 2006 “A Critical Reflection on Civic
Engagement”
Engagement should be a choice, not an
obligation.
Public Conversation on Engagement

Much of the public conversation or discourse about
baby boomers and future trends in work, retirement,
and volunteerism has focused on the affluent and
healthy boomers.

Further, in much of the public discourse, retirement
is framed as “voluntary” or a “choice”
Involuntary or Forced Retirement

For a significant number of Americans,
however, their exit from the paid labor force
is “involuntary” or “forced.”

Disability, labor market obstacles, and family
obligations push some individuals to exit from
the labor force at earlier ages.
National Health and Retirement Survey
(HRS)

Almost 1 out of every 3 retired workers perceived
their retirement as “forced.”

55% of retirees ages 51 and 59 reported that a health
condition or impairment limits the amount or type of
paid work they can do.

Szinovacz and Davey, 2005
“Predictors of perceptions of involuntary retirement”
National Health and Retirement Survey
(HRS)

Black and Hispanics were more vulnerable than
Whites to involuntary job loss in their pre-retirement
years.

Moreover, these periods of joblessness often result in
permanent laborforce withdrawal.

Flippen & Tienda, 2000
“Pathways to retirement: Patterns of labor force
participation and labor market exist among the preretirement populations by race, Hispanic origin, and sex”
Senior Community Service Employment
Program (SCSEP)

First authorized under the Economic
Opportunity Act in 1965. Now
standing as Title 5 of the Older
Americans Act (OAA).

SCSEP’s “Older Worker Program”
currently assists almost 100,000
lower-income adults 55-plus
nationwide through training and
subsidized employment with locallybased community service
organizations.
Photo by Sheri Augins, age 66
SCSEP Older Worker Program Participants

Among the approximately 25,000 surveyed Older Worker
Program (SCSEP) participants:




81% were living below the poverty line
69% had a poor employment history
29% lacked a high school degree or equivalent
Only 9% had a college degree
U.S. Dept of Labor Commissioned Study, Charter Oak Group 2007 Report

In essence, SCSEP participants are NOT individuals who find an
easy pathway back into the labor market.
The transfer of risk and economic
insecurity

“We have witnessed a massive transfer of economic
risk from broad structures of insurance, whether
sponsored by the corporate sector or by government,
onto the fragile balance sheets of American
families.”

Jacob Hacker, 2006
The Great Risk Shift: The Assault on American Jobs,
Families, Health Care and Retirement—And How You
Can Fight Back.
Growing Economic Insecurity

The outcome is that “economic insecurity” is no longer
just a problem of the poor and uneducated; it is now a
concern for even educated middle class Americans.

The “transfer of economic risk” suggests that in the next
decades we will witness increasing numbers of:

economically insecure older Americans, and
 older workers staying in the labor force longer as
they simply do not have enough money to retire
comfortably.
U.S. Labor Force Participation Rates for Men
and Women Ages 65 to 69, 1985 and 2005.
24%
WOMEN
34%
MEN
0%
2005
14%
25%
10%
20%
30%
40%
1985
Ageism and Obtaining Employment
“When older workers look for jobs, they get as
much respect as Rodney Dangerfield.”
Kelly Holland, New York Times, May 5, 2007.
Ageism and Obtaining Employment

Younger workers are 40% more likely to be called in
for a job interview than candidates 50 years of age
and older.


Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, 2006.
On average, workers age 55-plus spent 22 weeks
looking for a job versus 16 weeks for workers under
55.

US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006.
The undervaluing of “informal volunteering”

“The best volunteer work is taking care of the
children and the grandchildren. You don’t get any
recognition for it. But, in most instances, you work
harder.”
Recently retired female telecommunication worker, focus
group participant.
The Public Discourse on Volunteerism

In much of the public
conversation about
volunteerism, there is an
underlying assumption
that seniors who are
economically
disadvantaged and/or
have disabling health
conditions can only be
the “receivers” of, and
NOT the “givers” of,
acts of service.
Inclusive Models of Civic Engagement

Access is the “gold standard” by
which we judge a civic role to be
inclusive.

“Older adults must be eligible and
able to perform the civil role, but
the role must also provide the
necessary inducements and
supports for their involvement.”


Amanda McBride, 2007“Civic Engagement,
Older Adults, and Inclusion”
Photos by Laurie Frost & Jerri Aherns, age 77
SCSEP’s Civic Contribution


In 2004, SCSEP’s Older
Worker Program
provided almost 46
million hours of service
at minimum wage in
nonprofit and public
agencies across America
meeting a wide range of
community needs.
Photo by Lynn Vildulich
SCSEP’s Civic Contribution

About 70% of 10,000-plus
surveyed participating (host)
agencies reported that they could
NOT have provided the same
level of services without the
contributions of the low-income
adult workers paid for by SCSEP.
U.S. Dept of Labor Commissioned Study, Charter Oak
Group 2007 Report; Photo by: Phil McCleary
SCSEP’s Benefits to Participants

Of the 15,000+ surveyed
SCSEP Older Worker Program
participants:



Almost 7 out of every 10
reported having a more positive
outlook on life.
Almost 9 out of every 10 rated
their health as the same or better.
U.S. Dept of Labor Commissioned Study,
Charter Oak Group 2007 Report; Photo by
Lynn Vildulich
The Voices of 3 SCSEP Participants

[This program has given me] the opportunity to
prove that I can still be a person on whom you can
rely and on whom you can count. Everyday I learn
something new…Even as a senior there is still the
feeling of being treated with dignity and respect.

It has given me new goals and enables me to use my
skills and potential to help other seniors.

I now have confidence in knowing that I can still do
a job and know I can do well.
The Nation’s Policy Debate

The aging of baby boomers have made the
question of work and retirement central to our
nation’s policy debates.

The key policy issues raised by this trend are:


whether older adults should be encouraged to
work or to retire; and,
if they are to transition from work to retirement,
how can their economic well-being be assured.



Ultimately a social justice perspective requires that
we broaden the definitions of “successful aging” and
“elder engagement.”
It requires that we offer quality options, choice and
access to older Americans across all economic strata.
All Americans should have the opportunity to
achieve a secure and positive old age.