TERRE HAUTE —
There’s only one Brett Favre in the NFL.
But in the American workplace, there are lots of Brett Favres. The number of workers staying on the job longer than those of previous generations is growing. This year, an estimated 20 percent of the U.S. labor force is made up of people at least 65 years old, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics cited by the Denver Post. That’s up from 16.8 percent in 2008, and 15.8 percent in 1985.
Of course, Favre is just 40. (He’ll turn 41 in October.) “A mere pup,” said Martin DeAgostino, associate state director for Indiana AARP. Still, if his National Football League longevity is calculated like dog years, Favre is the George Burns of his profession.
Last week, Favre ended another summer of will-he?-or-won’t-he? by agreeing to return to the Minnesota Vikings this season — his 20th in the NFL. Three other pro quarterbacks played more seasons — George Blanda (26), Earl Morrall (21) and Vinny Testaverde (21). But though Blanda came off the bench to lead the Oakland Raiders in miraculous fashion at age 43 in 1970, most of his last five seasons were spent as a placekicker. Morrall and Testaverde served as fill-ins for younger, injured starters.
Favre, by contrast, put up career-best numbers for Minnesota last season, missing the Super Bowl by one play. Had he made it, Favre would’ve been the oldest man to play quarterback in a Super Bowl, topping John Elway (who was 38) by two years.
Favre’s announcement last week got mixed reviews. Some think he’s tempting fate, and should’ve gone out on a high note after last season. Others say he’s morphed into a prima donna, by dodging the rigors of summer training camp while he waffled on whether to play, leaving the sweat and preparation to his teammates. But a healthy contingent cheer his gumption and are focused on the bottom line — that this graybeard (literally), who became a grandfather in April, is going to line up behind center for the Minnesota Vikings.
In a way, he represents an expanding group of Americans crashing through traditional age barriers in the workplace and society.
“People want to stay involved. People want to have purpose,” DeAgostino said, “and I think it all relates to our power of choice.”
He was referring to the continued overwhelming influence of the massive baby boom generation — the 76 million Americans born between 1946 and ’64. (Favre misses that demographic by five years.) Any trend that unfolds within its large sector forces society to adapt to its needs and whims.
Take TV viewing, for example. The new median age for network audiences is 51, according to Nielsen Co. statistics cited by The Associated Press. In 1991, it was 37 for ABC, 42 for NBC, 45 for CBS and 29 for Fox. As a result, the networks are uncharacteristically shifting their programming and advertising toward older viewers.
The prison system has been rocked by the graying population, too. The number of state and federal prison inmates 55 and older increased 76 percent from 1999 to 2008, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics cited by The AP. The rest of the prison population grew just 18 percent. Caring for elderly inmates costs nearly three times that of younger ones, the American Civil Liberties Union says.
Obviously, lots of older Americans do other things besides watch TV and serve time. Every year, from 1996 to 2007, Americans ages 55 to 64 created new startup businesses at a higher rate than 20- to 34-year-olds, according to U.S. News & World Report. That activity level follows the increase in the number of older Americans staying in the work force.
“There are lots of people who are looking at working well into their 70s and 80s, and employers need to be thinking about that” and how they’re going to prepare for that, said Ellen Miller, executive director of the University of Indianapolis Center for Aging and Community.
The question is, why?
Some might seize on the self-indulgent reputation of baby boomers — the generation that brought America a 50-percent divorce rate, buy-now-save-later mentality and exploding health-care costs — and say they’re living in age denial, insisting that 50 is the new 40, or 60 the new 50, etc., etc. But outside of such skepticism, it’s also clear that with average lifespans increasing thanks to medical advances, Americans simply want to stay involved in their communities, to keep on contributing to society.
Even in older age, baby boomers, again, are greeted with chances to do things their parents could not.
“Many more of us don’t have the back-breaking physical labor that our parents did,” DeAgostino said, “and that certainly plays a role in when we’re ready to retire. Thirty years in a coal mine is certainly more strenuous than 30 years in front of a computer screen.”
On the flipside, millions of baby boomers can’t afford to quit working. Investments and retirement funds took devastating hits in the post-9/11 period of 2001 to 2003 and throughout the recession of 2007 to 2009. More than half of working adults ages 50 to 64 said they may delay retirement, according to a survey last year by the Pew Research Center. Sixteen percent figure they’ll work till they die, because of need, not desire.
“For a lot of people, traditional retirement age — that’s a dream,” DeAgostino said.
The situation varies from state to state. Indiana’s over-55 population may be underutilized.
The state ranked 42nd in the percentage of workers 55 and older employed in management, professional and technical jobs, according to a study by Miller’s Center for Aging and Community. “That is not a good sign,” she said.
That project, labeled “Gray Matters: Opportunities and Challenges for Indiana’s Aging Workforce,” also showed that Indiana ranked 37th in the nation in volunteerism by its over-55 residents, “which is not good,” Miller said. Indiana also ranked 42nd in the number of older workers in high-skilled occupations, 46th in the education level of those folks, and 50th — dead last — in the percentage of older folks returning to college.
Hoosiers can reverse that. It’s never too late, Miller said, to get more education, start exercising or volunteer.
“The idea that people can’t change, can’t learn, can’t be more physically engaged is absolutely false,” she said.
As for Favre, most retirement-age Americans can’t comprehend the $16.5-million salary he’ll receive from the Vikings for playing one year of football. But they might be able to relate to his defiance of ageism.
“Everybody’s writing you off. It just seems like, at 40, the guy’s a has-been,” Favre told The AP. “So, in saying that, it’s motivation for me.”
Mark Bennett can be reached at (812) 231-4377 or mark.bennett@tribstar.com.
Mark Bennett Opinion
MARK BENNETT: Americans staying on the job longer than previous generations
- Mark Bennett Opinion
-
-
MARK BENNETT: Toxic victories
When the Super Bowl ends tonight in Indianapolis, most of the Giants and Patriots will shake hands, despite their competitive fire, win or lose.
-
MARK BENNETT: Indianapolis will be on display for the nation with the Super Bowl coming to town
Someone immersed in a crash diet to make a smashing impression at a class reunion may get the desired effect.
-
MARK BENNETT: Patiently waiting for Indiana's primary
While standing in a check-in line at Leonardo da Vinci Airport in Rome a few years ago, I watched an Italian woman walk past dozens of more patient travelers to grab a spot up front.
-
MARK BENNETT: Processing postal change
You probably know one of those 10,026.
-
MARK BENNETT: Multiple choice question: Voters must choose which direction they want the future of education to go
There was a time when few Hoosiers outside of education circles could name the state superintendent of public instruction.
-
MARK BENNETT: With an historic election behind Terre Haute, it’s time to look at the future’s possibilities
Everybody knows their “woulda, coulda, shoulda” moments.
-
MARK BENNETT: Economic forecast: Things looking up but don’t expect ‘much of a dent in unemployment’
Outside the Columbia Club, the atmosphere matched the picture of 2012 painted by a panel of economists for an audience of business people gathered inside that ritzy building on Monument Circle in Indianapolis.
-
MARK BENNETT: Students who reach for a college education too often are buried under a pile of debt
Right now, millions of college graduates are wondering whether their education was worth the effort.
That doubt hurts the country. -
MARK BENNETT: Tangier’s festival volunteers keep past alive for future
Traditions stay alive only as long as the people who hold them dear.
Small towns have that same life expectancy. -
MARK BENNETT: Made in the USA? A political T-shirt faux pas
The most rational statement about a small furor in the U.S. Senate campaign was uttered by a tea party organizer.
-
MARK BENNETT: Daniels goes where a candidate probably won’t in new book
Some things simply won’t get said on the political campaign trail.
-
MARK BENNETT: Time waits for no Manning
Sad, disappointed and uncertain. Colts fans feel all of those.
-
MARK BENNETT: Value of every minute deeply realized on 9/11 (related VIDEO)
Editor’s Note
This summer, the Tribune-Star’s Mark Bennett visited New York City, Washington, D.C., and Shanksville, Pa., sites where the terror attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, are now memorialized. He observed the cityscapes and landscapes forever changed by the events of that day and talked with people he encountered there, many of whom witnessed the attacks and their aftermath from close range and had personal ties to its victims. -
MARK BENNETT: As school begins, carve out daily time
By now, most back-to-school checklists are tattered and creased.
-
MARK BENNETT: Movie scene shows Terre Haute accepting Debs' role in its history
You stay classy, Terre Haute.
-
MARK BENNETT: Community outpouring represents collective sympathy for fallen officer
Every Terre Haute resident has probably been asked the same question.
“Why do you live there?” -
MARK BENNETT: Declaration of cursive’s death reminiscent of ’70s metric-conversion mania
When the state of Indiana announced it would no longer require schools to teach cursive handwriting, I was LOL.
-
MARK BENNETT: On Fourth of July, remember, too, those we depend on
A spatula in one hand, a cool beverage in the other, and a stash of bottle rockets in a plastic sack in the garage.
-
MARK BENNETT: Get out and see what the Valley has to offer
Maybe you drive the same route to work every day. Shortest route. Saves time and a few dimes worth of gas.
-
MARK BENNETT: Walking the fine bipartisan line
Lugar’s occasional departures from hard-line conservatism have put his six-term Senate position in jeopardy.
-
MARK BENNETT: Terre Haute man receives kidney from younger brother
The act of giving often triggers an instant calculation of loss.
-
MARK BENNETT: Tornadoes stand as catastrophic mileposts in history
Aforce stronger than mankind rivets the attention of humans. Fear. Awe. Curiosity.
-
MARK BENNETT: A degree can open doors but in this day and age, is it enough?
This month, hundreds of brand-new graduates of the local colleges are staring at that piece of paper and wondering, “Was it all worth it?”
-
MARK BENNETT: Appeasing hard-liners in presidential race could erode Daniels’ budget-minded appeal
Some Hoosiers who voted Mitch Daniels into the Indiana governor’s seat in 2004 may not recognize Mitch Daniels, candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, if he chooses to run.
-
MARK BENNETT: From Mother to Child
My mom remains a sweet, generous, energetic, faithful lady at 87 years old. Raising five children somehow didn’t break her bright spirit or my late father’s endless patience.
-
MARK BENNETT: Hoosier college grads may want to consider teaching jobs elsewhere
Commencement ceremonies at Indiana State University and St. Mary-of-the-Woods College are just six days away.
-
Mark Bennett: Consumers stuck when it comes to dealing with increasing gas prices
Most motorists pulling up to the gas pumps lately can relate to Frank Costanza.
As George Costanza’s volatile father on “Seinfeld,” Frank was told to say, “Serenity now,” whenever he felt his blood pressure rise. Instead, Frank screamed the phrase, defeating the purpose and illustrating his perpetual state of agitation. -
MARK BENNETT: Vigo County struggles with persistent child poverty
The statistics are hard to accept, especially for a community proud of its progress.
The situation those numbers expose is difficult to change. -
MARK BENNETT: Long live ... us
In never-say-die America, life expectancy is longer than ever, according to a report issued this month by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
-
MARK BENNETT: Commission calls for academic success to be tied to NCAA Tournament participation
Follow the money.
That advice from Watergate informant “Deep Throat” led Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward to the truth that uncovered corruption in the nation’s public office. The concept applies to situations beyond the Oval Office, though. - More Mark Bennett Opinion Headlines
-
MARK BENNETT: Toxic victories
Raw Video: Biden Greets Chinese VP for Visit
Authorities: Houston Found Underwater in Tub
Whitney Houston Funeral to Be Invitation Only
Raw Video: Heavy Shelling in Homs, Syria
Raw Video: 5 People Injured in Bangkok Blasts
Bacteria Keep Swimmers Off Some Fla. Beaches
New Details in Search for Missing Utah Mom
Trial Opens for Ala. Man in Bride's Diving Death
Raw Video: Kim Jong Il Statue Unveiled
Baltimore's 'Crime Stopper' Is a Basketball Star
Raw Video: Hearse Arrives at N.J. Funeral Home
Arm Wrestler Not Guilty Plea in Wife's Death
Raw Video: Houston Body Flown From L.A. to N.J.
First Person: Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show
Raw Video: Whitney Houston's Last Performance
Obama: Good US-China Ties Help the Whole World
Raw Video: Protesters, Security Clash in Bahrain
And the Winner for Best Super Bowl Ad Is...
Obama's New Budget: The Winners and Losers
School Pays Students to Attend Class
Kim K. Wet, Wild and Natural
Ultimate Tazer Ball is a Shocking New Sport
Shakira Attacked By Sea Lion
Modern day treasure hunter searching for $3 billion prize
What Happened Inside Whitney's Hotel Room?
Saying 'I Love You' With a Sewage Plant Tour
VS Models Wow for V-Day
Olympic Swimmer Proposes on Podium After Big Win
Kate Upton MLB 2K12 Commercial
Watch: Whitney Houston's Golden Hearse
Scarlett Johansson's Bikini P-D-A
Man Allegedly Drowns Wife While Scuba Diving
Glee Pays Tribute to Whitney
Wash. becomes 7th state to okay same-sex marriage
Romijn's 60 Pound Weight Loss
The 'Celebrity Apprentice' Cast Meets Donald Trump
Kissing contest heats up
Hugh Hefner's Son Arrested
Jacqueline Kennedy's personal papers released
Did Tyler Perry Have a Secret Wedding?
