“The workforce system, as it stands in this country, is pretty decent when it comes to looking at younger people, folks in their 20s, 30s, and 40s,” says Gary Officer, the founder and CEO of CWI Labs. “But, as you age up into the system, the resources are not adequately made available to support older workers. And that’s a problem we have to both acknowledge, but also have to fix.”
CWI Labs is a nonprofit that aims to educate employers and policy makers on the value older workers contribute to the workforce. A big part of that education, he says, is to raise awareness about older workers locked out of the labor market, especially as technology and digital skills take an even more prominent role in all jobs.
“In many of the conversations about workforce opportunity around the effects of AI and the future of work, the conversation never addresses the issues of this emerging population of older workers, who by 2030, will become one of the largest single segments of our workforce.”
Officer cites apprenticeships as a great workforce development pathway for younger workers and jobseekers. He believes it doesn’t go far enough. “The change I’d like to see is a major infusion of investment into the workforce system that addresses the needs of all folks in the workforce and those seeking opportunities so they can be skilled and upskilled for in-demand occupations that would drive a 21st century U.S. economy.”
“Older Americans are not adequately being served by the workforce system and by employers. That’s an issue. The workforce system itself has to recognize its own flaws.”
Gary Officer spoke with me on the subject of age and workforce development as part of the Age in America series, a collaboration between WorkingNation and Scripps News Network which began in June.
Watch a clip from our interview below.
Get more of our WorkingNation Age in America articles, videos, and podcasts here.
Get more of Scripps News’ Age in America coverage here.