Celebrating August’s Senior Activism peacetime achievements of the American people.” On Aug. 28, 1950, Truman signed H.R. 6000, the Social In the history of senior Americans, August is an important Security Act Amendments of 1950, which extended Social month for a law that a former U.S. president called “one of the Security coverage to more Americans. Social Security remains an great peacetime achievements of the American people.” “essential part of the American way of life,” Truman said. It is also important because of an influential senior advocate Today, Washington insiders suggest the Social Security costwho created an organization that fought discrimination based on of-living adjustment, or COLA, for 2022 could be between 4.7% age and mandatory retirement at 65. and 5.3%. If true, this would be the largest COLA increase in On Aug. 13, 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed over 10 years. An announcement is expected in October. the Social Security Act into law. It established a Social Security Aug. 3 is the birthday of Maggie Kuhn, who, forced into Administration, with a system to provide income security for mandatory retirement at 65, founded the Gray Panthers in 1971. workers who retired at 65. It also helped states provide financial The Buffalo, New York, native worked on senior issues for many Maggie Kuhn, aid to dependent children and the disabled. years before being forced to retire. American activist Retirement is an individual decision — not everyone wants to Kuhn (1905–95) waged a successful campaign against age and founder of the retire at age 65. My uncle, a businessman in New Jersey, worked discrimination. She worked with Congress to ban mandatory Gray Panthers. into his late 80s. retirement and lived to see it signed into law. “I didn’t hit my stride in business until I was over 65,” he once On Nov. 1, 1986, President Ronald Reagan, then 75, signed told me. legislation banning mandatory retirement in most professions. Social Security was good for workers who did want to retire at 65. Some “With the signing of this legislation, we take another important step by who wanted to continue to work faced pressures to retire at that age because ensuring that the many individuals 70 years of age and older who have valuable of discriminatory employment practices that included assumptions that older contributions to make will now have the opportunity to do so,” the president workers were less productive and needed more medical leave from their jobs said. than younger employees. The Gray Panthers remain at the forefront of advocacy for seniors. Find out Employers had another important financial reason as well. They could pay more about them on their Facebook page. younger workers less than their more senior workers. Other age-discriminatory James E. Patterson is a Washington, D.C.-based writer and speaker. employment assumptions may have been job related or industry specific. Employers may have felt that since Washington wanted older workers to retire at 65, they needed to help by pressuring them to exit workplaces. The Social Security Act was pejoratively called the “Old Age Act” by many, which Are you getting your share of the probably also contributed to age discrimination. I recall as a youth seeing elderly farmers, male and female, actively farming. I was raised partly in Indiana and partly in Alabama, where I saw elder farmers Which buyers make up the Silver Economy? working long hours, seven days a week, often in harsh weather. Many still • 962 million men and women over the age of 60 plowed fields with mules. Some of them lived into their 90s. • A group with 11 times more wealth than millennials On Aug. 13, 1945, President Harry S. Truman issued a statement on the • Persons with a life expectancy in the U.S. is about 78.87 years • Persons who prefer in-person contact when possible 10th anniversary of the Social Security Act. He said it was “one of the great By James E. Patterson
SILVER ECONOMY? • A group that wants to age at home as long as reasonable
Why do you want to reach these buyers? • They are free of many economic burdens • They like to take care of themselves, be active, eat well, be fashionable, and have fun • They have more free time • They are looking for products and services to help them age well
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What sectors are on the rise?
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The not-so-obvious:
• Home improvements/renovations • Tourism and leisure activities tailored for them • Caregiver solutions • Financial products geared for seniors • Retirement living
• Security technology – mobile apps, sensors, wearable devices, smart clothing, etc. • Pet care – pet sitting, walking, grooming, food, accessories, etc. • Gardening/lawn services combined with snow removal • Mobile esthetic and concierge services – hairstylist, manicurist, massage, facials • Personal services – running errands, shopping
What are you waiting for? 51% of people aged 52-70 spend fewer than 11 hours a week online. While businesses need an online presence, print adds power to a media campaign. Most boomers and seniors are open to and love classic media.
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The obvious:
50plus LIFE—Covering Chester, Cumberland, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon, and York counties—is an excellent venue!
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50plus LIFE
August 2021
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