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- 🎉 The workforce is SHRINKING
🎉 The workforce is SHRINKING
PLUS: Employee wins $22M
PARTY PLAN 🎉
đź‘· The workforce is shrinking
đź’° Meet the employee who won $22M
đź“ť Election stuff
And, of course, MEMES!
MEME OF THE DAY
WORKFORCE
The Workforce is Shrinking…
Last week, the Employee Benefit Research Institute published a report that has economists worried.
According to the report, the share of workers in the U.S. labor force that are “prime working age” (ages 25-64) has significantly fallen since the mid-1990s, and older workers now make up a greater share of the workforce.
Additionally, the labor force participation rate for ages 65 and older hasn’t recovered to pre-pandemic levels, while the rate for those under age 25 nears record-low levels.
As of 2023, people over 65 made up the largest share of the U.S. population. Ages 16-24 made up the smallest share.
The imbalanced size of generations could cause a big ripple in the workforce within the next decade or so. The labor force participation rate is already shrinking, the majority of workers are older and within reach of retiring, and the generation that’s supposed to replace them is small and finding alternatives to the typical 9-5.
Experts say this means new recruiting and retention tactics are imminent for companies.
Here’s what an executive at EBRI had to say:
“Despite the difference in labor force participation (LFP) rates between 1975 and 2023 being less than 2 percentage points, significant changes in labor force patterns and composition have occurred over the past several decades. A large decline in the LFP rate was observed among those ages 16–19 at the beginning of the 2000s, while those ages 65 and over have had an increase in the LFP rate. The age of the labor force will play an important role in companies’ workforce development. At present, the aging of the Baby Boom generation has resulted in an increased share of older individuals in the labor force. However, members of this generation are almost all at least in their 60s, and the next generation, Gen X, is much smaller. So, a decrease in the share of workers ages 55 or older is imminent. How quickly this outcome results will be determined by whether the Baby Boom generation has continual higher labor force participation rates at ages over 65 than what has occurred in the past.”
WFH
Meet the Employee Who Won $22M
The verdict is in! $22.1 million has been awarded to a former Wells Fargo employee who was laid off for requesting to work from home.
Before anyone goes crazy, requesting to work from home isn’t just a $20M lottery ticket.
Here’s the recap of the work-from-home case that garnered national attention:
Robert Billesdon, a former managing director at Wells Fargo, requested a permanent work-from-home accommodation due to an impairment that required him to have frequent and immediate access to a restroom.
According to the jury, Wells Fargo’s managers “did not adequately engage in the interactive process required by the ADA to explore reasonable accommodations” for Billesdon. Instead, they allegedly pushed back on his request and ultimately selected his role for elimination. These actions were deemed in violation of both ADA and state law.
The jury awarded a significant portion of that sum for punitive damages and emotional distress. That indicates substantial sympathy among juries in cases where an employer denies work-from-home requests. According to an expert witness who’s served on similar cases, “jury trials tend to lead to significant awards for employees who request flexible work accommodations.”
According to a live poll on The Hill, a majority of readers think this case makes it “much more likely” or “somewhat more likely” that employees will request to work from home in the future as a result of this case.
Let’s hear from Office Party readers!
Will employees be more likely to request work-from-home accomodations as a result of this case? |
ELECTION
Election Stories
Where the 2024 presidential candidates stand on employment issues
Here at The Office Party, we want our readers to be informed voters, one way or the other! Here’s a brief summary of where the two primary candidates stand on employment issues such as job creation, DEI, immigration, labor, minimum wage, and paid leave.
How would banning taxes on tips actually work?
Both Donald Trump and Kamala Harris are pushing to end taxes on tipping. But economists say any policy that bans taxes on tips could be abused if guardrails aren't put in place. Check out the full analysis in under 10 minutes on NPR’s daily economics podcast.
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