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The COVID-19 pandemic may have pushed millions of older workers out of the workforce prematurely. A report published earlier this month from the Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis (SCEPA) at The New School showed that 2.8 million older workers have left their jobs since March — and ongoing economic turmoil coupled with poor health could make it difficult to resume their career elsewhere.
Some may have already given up. Per the report, 38% of unemployed older employees stopped looking for work and exited the workforce. Over the course of the next three months, SCEPA expects that an additional 1.1 million older workers will do the same.
Involuntary retirement may be particularly acute among older nonwhite and female workers. Per the report, nearly 2 in 10 nonwhite older workers lost their jobs, while 19.5% of nonwhite women lost their jobs and 11.8% left the workforce.
But why are older workers choosing to exit the workforce while participation from their younger counterparts has begun to rebound? It could have something to do with Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that over 90% of COVID-19 hospitalizations and deaths have been attributed to people ages 55 and over.
