Economic Pressures Force Boomers to Work Longer While Critics Cry Gerontocracy

Executive Briefing

• Reveals nearly 1 in 5 Americans aged 65+ held jobs in 2024, up 33% since 2015
• Identifies financial pressures—rising costs, low savings, healthcare—as key drivers of delayed retirement
• Highlights contradiction: society encourages active aging while criticizing older workers for blocking younger advancement
• Notes 1 in 4 adults over 50 expect to never retire, per 2024 AARP survey
• Argues declining civic spaces make work one of few remaining sources of social connection and identity