Employers should hang on to their older workers
Stress for Success
April 4, 2006

Studying the four American generations is fascinating. By sharing my research with you about each generation hopefully you’ll be able to minimize intergenerational conflicts at work and at home through greater understanding.

We’ll look at what are called Group Tendencies, which explain how some but not all in a given group share tendencies due to forces influencing that group. Group Tendencies can help you understand someone better as long as you don’t assume a specific tendency applies to everyone in that group, which would be a stereotype.

We’ll start with the oldest generation in the workplace today, the Veterans, born between 1922 and 1942. This year they turn 64 to 84. (Different researchers use slightly different birth years. I’ve chosen these because they make more sense to me.)

Veterans grew up when life was simpler, more personal and much less high-tech. More people lived in smaller, rural towns than today. Milk was delivered to most homes (with that thick crème on the top). Families gathered around the radio for popular shows like The Shadow.

They lived through the hard times of the Stock Market crash, the Depression, the Dust Bowl, and World War II and developed frugal habits to survive. “Waste not want not”, and “Turn off the lights” were heard in homes of this generation and beyond. They lived with significant scarcity; even bread lines for some.

In order to make it through these meager times they had to put aside individual needs and work for the common good, which allowed them to accomplish amazing things. They won the war and then rebuilt our nation and its economy and contributed greatly to the recovery of Europe and beyond. Victorious soldiers came home and got an education through the G. I. Bill. Rosie the Riveter returned home to raise a family.

This generation proceeded to build the foundation for the American dream. Patriotism was high. Honor, hard work and loyalty were their values.

By partnering with large government and corporate institutions they learned that great things could be accomplished by working toward common goals with tried and true methods. There was a growing sense that Americans could do almost anything. Everyone can profit if you have good leadership and a dedicated workforce to carry out the big plans. This generation had great respect for authority because it worked for them.
Their work ethic is epic; "an honest day's work for an honest day's pay", "duty before pleasure", live by the rules, work hard and eventually it will all pay off. That’s why Veterans oftentimes don't understand why younger people rebel against paying their dues and climbing the corporate ladder in an orderly and prescribed fashion. They also don't understand younger employees’ "lack of loyalty" to an employer.

Given Florida’s incredibly low unemployment rate and the predicted looming employee shortage employers would be wise to keep Veterans working as long as possible. To hold onto these valuable employees:

• Offer benefits like retirement plans, insurance, etc., that would add to Veterans’ financial security
• Offer flexibility so they can also pursue their retirement dreams
• Relationships are important so use personal vs. electronic communication as much as possible, be polite with "please" and "thank you", and speak to family, patriotism and traditional values
• Seek out their experience, knowledge and what has and hasn't worked in the past

What manager wouldn’t want all their employees to have the work ethic of this generation? They’re unbelievably reliable and hard working. With their accumulated wisdom they can also offer great historic understanding of an organization or industry in which they’ve worked a lifetime. It would be a shame to lose this.

Next week we’ll consider the biggest American generation of all time, the Baby Boomers.

Jacquelyn Ferguson, M. S., of InterAction Associates, is a trainer and a Stress Coach in Lee County. E-mail her at www.jackieferguson.com or call 239-693-8111 for information about her workshops on this and other topics or to invite her to speak to your organization. Register for her open enrollment seminar on June 9 at FGCU, Bridging the Generational Gap (590-7815).