Should Your Business Go the Seniors' Route?

Kate Supino

August 11, 2015

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When seeking to fill your small business labor pool, it's common to look in the demographic between late 20s and late 40s. But in so doing, you may be missing out on a prime labor market.

Many of the baby boomers who are reaching their senior years are eschewing traditional retirement plans in favor of earning part-time income in the workplace.

They are realizing that the perks of sitting around all day with no place to be are short-lived and disappointing. There are only so many golf tournaments to watch, and so many hours that can be spent sipping lemonade in the backyard.

At some point, seniors sit up and look around and realize that life isn't over quite yet.

As a small business owner, recognizing the untapped resources of senior labor can be like finding gold.

Seniors have a wealth of attractive benefits to bring to the table of employers who can see the value in this vetted collection of workers.

Here are some reasons why seniors should be on your list of job candidates:

Seniors are experienced

Seniors offer more experience than any other demographic.

Many seniors have 50 or more years of working experience behind them. They probably also have a broad range of experience to draw from as your employee.

It's likely that they worked from the time they were teens at one job or another.

Seniors have a good work ethic

Remember too, that seniors grew up when people knew the value of a dollar.

Some lived through the Great Depression, and understand first-hand that when you're being paid for your work, you work as hard as you can.

The era that seniors grew up in was an era where a good work ethic was engrained in them.

Seniors are reliable

Many seniors are reliable employees.

As experienced employees, they understand that if they are scheduled for work at a certain time, that's when they'll show up.

When you hire a senior, you'll most likely have a dependable, reliable and trustworthy employee.

Seniors defended our country

Many seniors are war veterans.

They sacrificed a part of their lives to defend our country. Many of them came home to broken homes, poverty and joblessness.

If you have the opportunity to give a little something back to a senior war vet, let it be a job where they can earn a fair wage for work.

Of course, there are a few concerns with hiring seniors, among them durability and potential health issues.

As the following article looks at, when thinking about working past 65 - sometimes it is good for your health; sometimes bad.

As long as your company offers full or partial health benefits, you could consider hiring a senior for some of your available job positions.

One major grocery store chain, Massachusetts-based DeMoulas, routinely hires seniors to work part-time as checkers and baggers.

The work is relatively easy, the seniors are working in a socially-active environment, and DeMoulas has a generous health plan available to employees.

There's little reason why you shouldn't employ at least one senior in your company.

Once you see the benefits, it's probable that seniors will be first on your list the next time you hire.