So much for the “great resignation” and early retirement. Older workers flooded into the workforce last month. Buried in the latest September jobs figures published Friday is the remarkable news that pretty much all of the jobs growth during the month came from Generation X and baby boomers.
A remarkable 578,000 of people over age 45 joined the workforce in September, according to the Labor Department’s monthly household survey. Meanwhile the numbers under 45 actually fell, by 154,000. But the biggest gains weren’t among the middle-aged, in their late 40s and early 50s. The biggest rise, 355,000, was among the over 55s. Even more remarkably: There has even been a big jump in employment among those aged 65 to 69. Some 34% of Americans in that age group now have jobs—far above levels seen one or two generations ago, and just shy of the record rates seen just before the pandemic. This isn’t a rogue reading either. So far this year employment has risen by about 1.8 million among Gen Xers and boomers, compared with barely 1 million millennials. The over 45s today make up about the same perce …