The Cost to Retire Comfortably Around the World

[Colin Parkinson]

When I entered the job market, there was a recession and you took the job you could get. People will think I was lucky to be born when I was, and yes I am in many ways, but it was not all chocolate and roses.

 

[mariomike]

When I entered the job market, there was a recession and you took the job you could get.

Statistics Canada put it this way,

Youth Unemployment Pressures: As large baby boom cohorts started hitting working age, youth unemployment remained a prominent structural challenge, lingering at elevated levels following peaks near 11% in the early 1970s.

Canadian youth and full-time work: A slower transition

This month’s edition of Canadian Megatrends looks at labour force participation, unemployment, full-time and part-time work, and real wages for young workers in Canada from 1946 to 2015.

www150.statcan.gc.ca

 

[KevinB]

Damn some of you guys would love to be living in Logan’s Run world.

 

[dapaterson]

Damn some of you guys would love to be living in Logan’s Run world.

A modern Logan's Run would just be a Leonardo DiCaprio dating site.

 

[Blackadder1916]

How many of those younger (entry level?) workers are actually being blocked by older workers who delay retirement?

Older workers: Exploring and addressing the stereotypes - Canada.ca

In 2019, the Forum of Federal, Provincial and Territorial (FPT) Ministers Responsible for Seniors commissioned a review of the literature to examine current knowledge on attitudes and beliefs about older workers and to uncover initiatives to address stereotypes.

www.canada.ca

Researchers from the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy investigated the claim that delayed retirement will cause higher unemployment for younger workers in the US (Munnell & Wu, 2013). They used population survey data for individuals aged 20 to 64 collected between 1977 and 2011, and found no evidence for claims that the presence of older workers reduces opportunities or wages for younger workers, even considering gender and education levels.

Do.older_.workers.squeeze.out_.younger.workers_2.pdf (The Stanford Study mentioned above)

What may be the more significant driver that affects "entry level" hiring.

Entry-Level Hiring Falls 80%: Why AI Is Changing Careers

Harvard research finds entry-level hiring has dropped 80% at AI-adopting companies. Here's why AI is reshaping early-career jobs.

www.forbes.com

https://archive.ph/AeMuX (non paywall)

9 Entry-Level Jobs Are Disappearing Fast Because of AI

AI is eliminating entry-level jobs at record speed. Discover which 9 fields are most at risk and how to protect your career from automation in 2025.

www.finalroundai.com

While skilled trades may still (for a while) be somewhat immune from AI (so far a computer is not as skilled at swinging a hammer as a person), some of the skills and experiences that are supplemental to many jobs - decision making and customer service - are developed in entry level positions which may be eliminated by automation. Where will a worker develop necessary person to person business skills when she/he no longer learns that important first question "do you want fries with that"?

 

[Cloud Cover]

Yes, I believe there is a moral obligation to step aside eventually.

A healthy society cannot allow one generation to indefinitely occupy positions of power, influence, wealth, and opportunity while younger generations wait on the sidelines. Every generation has a responsibility not only to build for the future, but also to make room for those who will inherit it.

Many of today's seniors came of age during a period of unprecedented economic growth and opportunity. Housing was more affordable, education was less expensive, and it was often easier to build wealth and establish a career. They were given opportunities that many younger people can only dream of today.

I sympathize with those who, despite those advantages, were unable to achieve financial security. Some experienced hardship, bad luck, illness, or circumstances beyond their control. Compassion for those individuals is important.

However, public policy cannot be built solely around preserving the status quo for one generation. If maintaining the comfort and influence of the old comes at the expense of the prospects of the young, then we are sacrificing the future to protect the past.

At some point, leadership, authority, and opportunity must pass to the next generation. That is not ageism. It is the natural and necessary cycle of a healthy society. A society that refuses to make room for its youth eventually stagnates, because the people who must live in the future are denied the chance to shape it.

Eventually, when you’re ready and not a day before.

Like this guy…