There are people named Raramuri, otherwise called Tarahumara, who live in northwestern Mexico. They run and run for a lifetime, as if they try to prove what Raramuri means in their language; runners on foot. In addition, according to Deepak Chopra, a medical doctor and writer, the Tarahumara people outshine others when it comes to lung capacity, cardiovascular health, and stamina.
In Korea, there exist also those who do their own works during most of their lifetime. They reach an experienced level where natural talent could not achieve. However, they lose their opportunities to show their abilities on the grounds that they are old. These are the people from the baby boom generation; they are now starting to or will be going to retire from their jobs.
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| ▲ Baby boomers are searching for new jobs. Provided by EToday | ||
Who are the Baby Boomers?
The baby boom generation means a group of people who were born from 1955 to 1963 in Korea. They have acted as a backbone in Korean society and economy from the 1970s. The people also experienced many historical events through the development of democracy in Korea. It is not an exaggeration to say that the baby boom generation itself is the modern history of Korea.
In spite of several dictators, the baby boomers injected justice into Korea’s society and they also achieved economic development which people around the world admired, although they were under a situation where human rights and labor’s three primary rights were ignored. For the present, they support their parents and their children at the same time. Their existence was, is, and will be indispensable for Korean history and people living today.
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| ▲ Sources from OECD, 2012 | ||
Numbers About The Baby Boom Generation
According to Statistics Korea’s and the Ministry of Employment and Labor (MOEL)’s reports, there are 6.95 million baby boomers in Korea and they account for 14.5 percent of the Korean total population. 74.6 percent of the baby boom generation graduated from high school. In addition, it is expected that around 150 thousand regular workers will annually retire from their jobs over the next ten years.
The accession rate of this generation is 75.5 percent. Of the baby boomer employees, permanent workers account for 34.9 percent and the number of temporary workers, or dayworkers, are 48.6 percent. It indicates that the employment status of this generation is considerably unstable. Thus, the problem of the baby boomers’ unemployment could come in earnest earlier beyond analysts’ expectations.
Their assets and income are more than the average. 80 percent of their total assets are real estate and 96 percent of those who have home ownership are harassed by debts. This fact makes the baby boomers go through a liquidity crisis. In such a situation, more than half of them do not prepare retirement savings.
A Story of a Baby Boomer
Here is a baby boomer. He says, “I might call it absentmindedness. I worked for about 30 years at only one place of work. After retiring, I felt a sense of betrayal and felt despondent. It took four months to get over this problem.”
His name is Yang J.S. (54, Incheon) who refused to reveal his full name. As one of the baby boom generation, the gentleman retired from his work at the end of April. He adds, “There are a lot of troubles. Given that our average life expectancy is more than 80 years, we are not economically prepared enough to cover such a period. In addition, the fact that no jobs are left to do after retiring means that retirement is too fast.”
He made attempts and endeavored to get a job again after losing his job. He points out, “The gap between companies is literally extreme. Except companies which are up to scratch, circumstances where companies have been confronted are terrible. Therefore, the number of good occupations amounts to few. It brings out the miseries of unemployment for both the baby boomers and the young.”
He also supports his three children. Only one of his kids obtained a job and the others still study or are searching for their jobs. This is what the baby boom generation faces right now in general. In addition, he is worried about potential marriages of his children. “In the case of my son, I have to help him have a lease on a house for his marriage. This is a problem.” Moreover, he reaches such an age where he has to be anxious about his health for the rest of his life. The baby boomer recognizes that he did not prepare for it.
Problems
Why is it hard for the baby boomers to get a job again? According to Kim Dong Jun, Chief Consultant of The Federation of Korean Industries (FKI), there is a rule “eight to one.” He says, “It is obvious that jobs should be given back to the baby boomers. However, the reality is as follows: the company needs just one applicant but eight apply for the company.” Lee Ji Eun, deputy director of MOEL, explains, “The demand of companies for the baby boomers is little in itself and it is hard for them to lower their expectation level for the companies to apply for.”
According to Statistics Korea’s reports, from 2010 to 2015, 530 thousand people will retire from their jobs and from 2015 to 2020, the 980 thousand unemployed are expected. The working population which consists of people aging from 15 to 64 will be on the decrease after peaking in 2016. Such analyses indicate that supply of labor is going to decline. According to a report of Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the potential growth rate of Korea will keep dropping.
Moreover, the baby boomers will undergo a liquidity crisis of their assets. Therefore, they will try to sell the biggest part of their assets, the house. It will bring out a drop of real estate prices and such a problem really happened in Japan and the U.S. already. According to Hyundai Research Institute, due to the retirement of the baby boom generation, it is expected that the tax revenue of 7.7 trillion won will reduce.
How to Deal With This Problem?
The government has put forth efforts to reduce the damage which the retirement of the baby boom generation will cause. The government gives subsidies to the employers who hire people passing the retirement age. Also, it does not forget to recommend to business owners who set the age of retirement lower than average and to guide them through deferred retirement. Through Korea Polytechnics, the government provides the baby boomers with vocational training for free. MOEL also offers a lot of helpful information through the center for employment support and their website.
FKI held a job fair for the baby boomers on September 12 at Ilsan Kintex. Numerous companies took part in this event. Most of the participating companies tell that they need the experienced baby boomers. Park Jung Ki, management team manager of HKR Plant Division, counts three attractive points of this generation; the experience, the comprehensive judgment about certain situations, and the ability to solve the relation problem among groups, person to person, or person to groups.
Sim Jae Moon, Personnel & General Team Director of Hanyu Energy, says, “Our company is developing now. There is a work which new employees do and there is another work which only experienced workers can do. Our company can obtain much information about systems which we need in order to develop more from them.”
Actually, the government has been criticized for late handling of the baby boom generation problem which was anticipated long ago. Certain companies also fire their employees not based on ability, but on age. Is it our timehonored slogan that ability is prior to age? Sure enough, the government and the companies cannot completely solve this problem by themselves. This problem needs the attention of the baby boomers themselves and society.