If you’re 65 years old and still working, you may be part of an elite group of American workers. Pew Research Center, in its latest jobs survey, found that employees aged 65 and older are the happiest employees in the workforce. The survey found:

  • Two-thirds of those 65+ are extremely or very satisfied with their jobs, compared with:
    • 55% of those 50-65 years old
    • 51% aged 39-49
    • 44% of workers between 18-29
  • 62% of older workers say they’re satisfied with their relationship with their manager or supervisor.
  • 51% of employees 65+ are the most likely to say they’re satisfied with their day-to-day tasks.
  • 33% are satisfied with opportunities for promotion.
  • 65+ workers are more likely than others to say they find their job enjoyable and fulfilling all or most of the time.

 

Overall, 65+ workers are a pretty happy bunch of folks.

 

Of the 157 million U.S. workers, almost 11 million are 65+ and that’s expected to rise to 13 million by 2024. So, what is it that makes these older workers happy at work? Perhaps a combination of things.

 

Boston College’s Center for Retirement Research says it may be because automation and technology have made jobs less strenuous. Part of it may be a trend of employers giving older workers more flexibility to work independently or in some cases, remotely. But the Pew research found that workers 65 and older tend to be the most satisfied at work because of their age, expertise, knowledge, and life priorities.

 

Juliana Horowitz, associate director of Pew Research, says, “The older you get and the more established you are in what you do, you know how to do your job better. You might have more control of your daily tasks than somebody who’s junior.”

 

On the other side of the study, Pew found that Gen Z workers are the unhappiest workers. Employees 18-29 years old were the most likely to say they found their jobs overwhelming and stressful all or most of the time and the least likely to find them enjoyable or fulfilling.

 

The 2023 Bankrate Job Seeker Survey found the unhappiest workers are Gen Z in their early and mid-20s. According to the survey, that group is the most likely group to quit one job and start another within 12 months. 55% said they are very likely to look for a new job in the next 12 months compared to just 13% of boomers.

 

Perhaps the unhappiness among Gen Z workers comes from expectations. More and more the phrase “life-work balance” has become a Gen Z mantra, and employers are discovering that it is heavily tilted toward “life.”

 

Recruiter Sameera Khan was shocked by the demands of a Gen Z intern he was interviewing to possibly hire. The intern said he was looking for work-life balance and wanted to work no more than 5 hours a day and get paid eight times more than what others in that position were being paid.

 

There is certainly a divide between employers and Gen Z employees. A survey by Deloitte Digital found 3 main challenges for Gen Z and their bosses.

  • Contrasting views on the importance of empathy-Gen Z ranked empathy as the second most important trait in a boss, while bosses ranked it, on average, a distant fifth.
  • Divergent views on the impact of work on mental health-Gen Z workers feel that they are not getting the mental health support they need in the workplace and believe their ideas about how work impacts their mental health differ from those of their bosses.
  • Disparate views on the importance of work to personal identity-61% of Gen Zers already in the workforce feel that work is a significant part of their identity, while 86% of bosses say that work is a significant part of their identity.
  • Other areas that lack alignment include rewards, recognition, and training.

 

The reality is, older workers will eventually retire. But for the moment, more are choosing to work longer and employers are embracing it. Maybe it’s because workers 65+ are the happiest ones in the workforce, or as the Wall Street Journal reported, “Certain businesses are targeting seniors on the premise that age is an asset.” It may even have a basis in science, as reported in the Harvard Business Review.

The scientific evidence on this issue shows, for most people, raw mental horsepower declines after the age of 30, but knowledge and expertise — the main predictors of job performance — keep increasing even beyond the age of 80. There is also ample evidence to assume that traits like drive and curiosity are catalysts for new skill acquisition, even during late adulthood. When it comes to learning new things, there is just no age limit, and the more intellectually engaged people remain when they are older, the more they will contribute to the labor market.

Why are 65+ employees the happiest of all workers? Could be lots of reasons. But maybe they took advice from Bobby McFerrin who sang,

 

Ain’t got no cash, ain’t got no style
Ain’t got no gal to make you smile
But don’t worry, be happy
‘Cause when you worry your face will frown
And that will bring everybody down
So don’t worry, be happy

 

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