Baby boomer women are in big trouble

Baby boomer women are in trouble. Unlike any other time in our nation’s history, unless there are dramatic policy shifts, in terms of absolute numbers, baby boomer women, most particularly minority women, will find their elder years to be a "never ending" struggle. After selflessly caring for their children and aging parents, a significant number of our country’s 40 million plus boomer women will not be able to afford to retire, will fall below the poverty line and experience financial insecurity and poorer health in their later years with limited aid from traditional safety nets.

The joyful image to the left is how we would have everyone believe old age will be. The reality, for the majority of women, may be very, very different.

Many of our boomer women will not have secure retirement futures because of diverse and interrelated demographic, social, cultural, political and economic societal factors. Almost 30 million boomer women will face uncertain employment, financial, heath care, housing and retirement futures because of gender-biased public and private sector policies.

Baby Boomer Women: Secure Futures or Not? is a unique study because it provides answers and solutions to women planning their employment, financial, retirement, health care and housing futures.

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Gary Moller Comments:

Older women generally have fewer financial assets to their name and have less earning capacity and less job security than their male counterparts. No longer is there the cushion of the extended family to fall onto. Furthermore, our young ones coming through face the uncertainty of a world in upheaval and the prospect of premature ill health due to ailments like diabetes and heart disease.

My mother had six children who are there to care for her if she ever needs. How many children does the average Baby-Boomer woman have to call upon for support? Not that many. With fewer young people to every old person, it does beg the question of who will be there to do the caring? At this very moment the news is running stories of neglect due to a growing shortage of care givers who, incidentally, are among the most poorly paid workers in the country.

These are issues that we need to be dealing with right now. The Tsunami of ageing Baby-Boomers is almost upon us and we must hurry our preparations.