General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Baby boomers are killing themselves at an alarming rate, raising question: Why? [View all]progree
(10,901 posts)[font color=red]winter is coming>> 29. Seems like things are very polarized for folks in their 50s.
If you've hung on to a job throughout the crash, life can still be pretty good. If you got laid off, regardless of the reason, it's extremely difficult to get back on the merry-go-round once you've been flung off. Workers in their 50s used to be "experienced". Now, they're just "overqualified". <<[/font]
[font color=blue]OneGrassRoot>It's especially hurtful when people of the same age group don't seem to understand what so many others are (mostly silently) going through because it's vastly different from their own experience. <[/font]
I do understand, again, I'm saying the 20-somethings and the really elderly have it worse, on average overall.
The official unemployment rate in April was 13.1% for 20-24 year olds, 7.4% for 25-34 year olds, 5.9% for 45-54 year olds, and 5.5% for age 55+ (BLS Table A-10, empsit.pdf). We all know the official unemployment rate undercounts, but still, I haven't seen any indicators that say that people in their 50's have it tougher than in their 20's as far as employment.
I agree with Winter Is Coming that it is especially crummy for those in their 50s who lost their jobs and are trying to find anything comparable, or even anything.