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Belt-Tightening Spares Older Workers

Increasingly, companies value maturity, experience of older employees

By Jim O'Neill,  Newser User

Posted Jan 21, 2009 8:06 AM CST

(Newser) – As companies nationwide cut tens of thousands of jobs, younger workers appear to be taking a hit as companies try to retain older, more experienced employees, reports BusinessWeek. Boomers increasingly have become corporate America’s gold standard: “When you’re in your 50s and 60s, you’re in your prime,” said a CVS Caremark executive.

Fewer Americans 25 to 54 were employed in December 2008 than in December 2007, while workers aged 55 and older filled an additional 878,000 jobs over the same period. Overall, unemployment among older workers is significantly lower than for younger workers. Companies under pressure "pick the best and brightest people, those who can do more with less," says a labor lawyer.

Customers walk into a CVS store in North Andover, Mass.
Customers walk into a CVS store in North Andover, Mass.   (AP Photo/Winslow Townson, file)
A customer enters a CVS pharmacy in Gloucester, Mass.
A customer enters a CVS pharmacy in Gloucester, Mass.   (AP Photo/Lisa Poole, file)
Nurse Sonia Negron, left, gives a flu vaccination to Marie Ruggiero, right, at a CVS pharmacy in Brooklyn. CVS says it's working to keep older workers employed.
Nurse Sonia Negron, left, gives a flu vaccination to Marie Ruggiero, right, at a CVS pharmacy in Brooklyn. CVS says it's working to keep older workers employed.   (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan)
A Walgreens pharmacy is seen in Bethel Park, Pa. The chain is continuing to work with AARP in a program designed to attract older workers for its stores.
A Walgreens pharmacy is seen in Bethel Park, Pa. The chain is continuing to work with AARP in a program designed to attract older workers for its stores.   (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
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