Career Tips for the Un-Retired

The current economic recession (or wait, are we calling it a depression now?) has caused forced a lot of retirees to go back to work.

The uncle of a friend of mine is 63. He has been retired for a year, but just went back to work last month as a bagger at Trader Joe’s. His boss told him the other day that over 1,000 people had applied for the job (!!!) and many of them were retirees just like him.

Admittedly, the job market is tight these days. But if you are a retiree and you find yourself wanting or needing a full-time, part-time job or seasonal job, there are a growing number of on-line resources to help you figure out your next move.

>> Business Week ran a great, albeit depressing, story back in December that profiled a number of unretirees. Their common link: They had all done what they were supposed to do — work hard, save money, invest wisely. And then the housing market tanked and their investments went into freefall.

>> US News & World Report’s Planning to Retire blog recently had a great post about 3 ways retirees are coping with the recession. The good news is that recouping market losses does not have to take forever.

It will take approximately 1 year and 9 months in the workforce to recoup market losses for employees who have spent between 20 and 29 years on the job, according to calculations by Jack VanDerhei, research director for the Employee Benefit Research Institute.

>> The AARP, Association for the Advancement of Retirement Persons, recently expanded its online career services for workers who are 50+. Their online job bank features age-friendly employers with full-time, part-time and flexible hour jobs. Access to the database is free. There is also a blog from Bob Skladany, the VP of RetirementJobs.com, and an online discussion group forum for talking about online career coaching for the mature worker.

>> Are you a retired government employee? Enrge.us matches retirees with private companies looking for contract employees. Employers post jobs and review resumes on the site, while job seekers publish their resumes and peruse contract positions. The service is free.

>> The federal government runs a job assistance program for lower-income retirees, age 55 and up. The Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP) provides training and job with community service agencies, such as schools, day care centers, libraries and hospitals.

>> RetirementJobs.com partners up with AARP and runs a job bank with more than 30,000 listings specially targeted at retirees, age 50+.

>> SeniorHelpers.com hires mature workers for in-home senior companion care. Pay is $8-12 per hour and duties include prepping meal, running errands, providing rides and helping with housework. There are Senior Helpers officers in 230 cities around the U.S.

>> JobMonkey has a great job directory, with dozens of offerings updated daily.  Try searching for part-time, seasonal or temporary jobs, all of which are prime pickings for the more mature worker.

Do you know about any other resources for seniors and “un”retirees? Please share them in our comments section!