What About Seasoned Professionals?

November 1, 2021

A couple of weeks ago, I sat down with U.S. Senator Chris Coons to discuss workforce challenges and ways the federal government may be able to help employers. While workforce training is largely a state government policy matter, several federal programs are important too.

We talked directly about Social Security and the income limits placed upon people nearing full retirement or already at full retirement. This U.S. News story describes the most common scenarios workers in their 60’s face as they enter retirement and begin receiving Social Security payments. Hold this thought...

We know the First State is a retirement destination as retirees from the Mid-Atlantic settle in Sussex County and elsewhere in the state. With them come their brains, talent, career history, and experience. Now imagine you are an employer looking for experienced talent, but are mindful of your budget and what you can afford. Among us are people with forty-plus years of work experience and vast amounts of knowledge. We know many seniors will work out of necessity. Yet others have the option to work, but could be stifled by antiquated policies created decades ago.

Employers need people, and seniors offer a treasure of talent. Perhaps it is time to look at Social Security and other programs to identify areas for policy modernization that will help us attract senior talent. Employers could truly benefit when they hire some highly-experienced seniors, many whom are willing to work for 15-20 hours a week.

Uniquely Delaware

2020 Census: Delaware

Here are some key national-level 2020 Census results to help you see how your state or county compares in each topic area:

Age: Under-18 is down 1.4% and adult population up is 10.1%
Race and Ethnicity: White alone 61.6%; Black alone 12.4%; Hispanic 18.7%; Asian alone 6%; American Indian and Alaska Native alone 1.1%; Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone 0.2%; Some Other Race alone 8.4%; Two or More Races 10.2%
Diversity Index: 61.1%, up from 54.9%
Housing: Units are up 6.7% and vacancies are down to 9.7%

Learn more >

News You Can Use

Yes, it’s November. We kick off the week with construction spending figures from September, while tomorrow we’ll see third-quarter homeownership rates. On Wednesday we’ll learn of the all-important ADP employment report from October and listen carefully as Fed Chair Jerome Powell hosts a 2:30pm press conference. Thursday will bring us international trade deficit figures from September, and we wrap up the week on Friday with October unemployment figures and average hourly earnings data.

Companies hosting earnings calls include AMC Entertainment Holdings, CAN Financial, Clorox Company, and McKesson Corp today. Under Armor, Air Canada, Amgen, and H&R Block are among the companies with scheduled calls tomorrow. Alibaba, Electronic Arts, Dunn & Bradstreet, and Ball Corp are among the hundreds of others with scheduled events later this week.

Michael J. Quaranta

President

Delaware State Chamber of Commerce

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