On the scrap heap at 50 ?

[anonymous-user]

Millennials seem to feature quite a lot lately. Poor disenfranchised souls - no home ownership for many, less wealth, paying for the mistakes of their parents etc.

Got me thinking about the Gen-Xers of which I'm one (45 yo) and what the future holds. Boomers are pretty much retired now (lucky them). Used to be you'd be on the scrap heap by 50 yo, often forced into early retirement if you lost your job at 55. Is this still the case, given we are an ageing population, expected to work for longer or do we all face a future career wearing an apron in B&Q as the Millennials take over? How long will we continue to work alongside one another?

I work in technology and I'm concerned with the pace of change, not all of it progressive. Recent attitude in my sector is to throw 100 business ideas at the wall and see what sticks. I see less and less strategy, planning or due diligence and as a consequence, more money wasted.

Interesting times.

[Collectingbrass]

I think it depends on the industry sector. With mine (construction) there is a significant skills gap coming at all grades that Brexit will only worsen, so I don't expect to be on the scrap heap. That said I am not sure whether I will be at as high a level at 60 that I am at 50.

For other sectors I think it will be more challenging, and I think Gen X's will find themselves on hard times because of where the networking in those industries is & that the millenials are prepared to work for nothing (seemingly) in so many sectors. I get that is not sustainable for them, but the businesses will not be able to afford to change their cost base enough to afford grey beards who expect to be paid for what they can do.

[MitchT]

As social media and the associated tech erode attention spans the likes of us 'X'ers will find that a quality we possess - that of being able to concentrate on something for more than eight seconds - will become increasingly scarce and demand for our services will increase. Maybe we're about to have our hay day!

[egor110]

Us generation x types have 2 things in out favour :

1- we should of paid off mortgages by our mid 40's

2- we're probably the last generation to have a half decent pension

[Collectingbrass]

egor110 said:

Us generation x types have 2 things in out favour :

1- we should of paid off mortgages by our mid 40's

2- we're probably the last generation to have a half decent pension

I think you will find there are far fewer Gen X who will have done that than you think. Most of the people I know have either had to start again on their mortgage or have endowment or IO mortgages and are reliant on their property to both pay their capital and be their pension - if they have a plan at all...

[MitchT]

Collectingbrass said:

I think you will find there are far fewer Gen X who will have done that than you think.

Indeed. My first job (which I had for three years) paid me just about enough to cover my bus fares. My second job (which I had until last August) paid me a little more but while I was saving a deposit for a house prices took off and that was that. 42 now and basically my chances of ever getting on the property ladder rest on me either A: Inventing the next Facebook, B: Winning the lottery, or C: Doing exceptionally well in my new state of self-employment. Equally, crap wage = crap pension.

[Blue One]

Collectingbrass said:

I think you will find there are far fewer Gen X who will have done that than you think. Most of the people I know have either had to start again on their mortgage or have endowment or IO mortgages and are reliant on their property to both pay their capital and be their pension - if they have a plan at all...

+1 there are clearly some very fortunate people on PH who have their financial futures sorted. Unfortunately, they are by no means representative of X-ers or the next generation(s).

[egor110]

Collectingbrass said:

egor110 said:

Us generation x types have 2 things in out favour :

1- we should of paid off mortgages by our mid 40's

2- we're probably the last generation to have a half decent pension

I think you will find there are far fewer Gen X who will have done that than you think. Most of the people I know have either had to start again on their mortgage or have endowment or IO mortgages and are reliant on their property to both pay their capital and be their pension - if they have a plan at all...

I am a boring fart , be modest be mortgage free by mid 40's is pretty much my only aim.

[HD Adam]

I'm 55.

Just had a nice payrise so I might go till 60 now

I have a share option in my company.

My mortgage is paid off.

Just taken a tax free lump from the PP and reinvested the rest.

I have 6 figure savings in the building society.

I have a Goatee

Don't think I'm on the scrap heap just yet.

[Buster73]

HD Adam said:

I'm 55.

Just had a nice payrise so I might go till 60 now

I have a share option in my company.

My mortgage is paid off.

Just taken a tax free lump from the PP and reinvested the rest.c

I have 6 figure savings in the building society.

I have a Goatee

Don't think I'm on the scrap heap just yet.

That much wedge In the building society ?

Not doubting the amount , but must question the reasoning behind leaving it there gathering dust so to speak.

Madness imho.

[Bikerjon]

I reckon the tech industry can be one of the worst places to be in as you get older. There's not many other professions I can think of where a particular skill can be so in demand one minute and then be almost worthless 5-10 years later. A fairly unsettling business unless you enjoy the constant treadmill of retraining every few years.

[85Carrera]

Buster73 said:

Madness imho.

or bullst ...

[bitchstewie]

As said it'll depend on the sector but if I were to generalise about older staff it would be resistance to change being more of an issue than actual skills.

World of difference between whether you can do something vs. whether you want to do something.

If I hear "Yes but we've always done it that way" one more time

[Tim1989]

HD Adam said:

I'm 55.

Just had a nice payrise so I might go till 60 now

I have a share option in my company.

My mortgage is paid off.

Just taken a tax free lump from the PP and reinvested the rest.

I have 6 figure savings in the building society.

I have a Goatee

Don't think I'm on the scrap heap just yet.

Yours might be the last generation to get perks like this. Pensions reducing or absolute bare minimum already, and a retirement age that is getting increasingly higher. The days of people retiring at 55/60 are well and truly numbered.

[StevieBee]

As others have said, this is very industry specific.

I hit 50 on Sunday and consider myself to still be in the ascendancy in terms of my value and capability but I do see a lot of my peers adopt a mantra that the old days were better and an "I know best" type of thinking which is counter productive to being able to maintain a valid presence in a progressive workplace.

(Parklife!)

I know two blokes in their mid-50s in senior positions who do not know how to use emails and see the internet as some black art. How they survive is beyond me.

[anonymous-user]

Bikerjon said:

I reckon the tech industry can be one of the worst places to be in as you get older. There's not many other professions I can think of where a particular skill can be so in demand one minute and then be almost worthless 5-10 years later. A fairly unsettling business unless you enjoy the constant treadmill of retraining every few years.

Assuming you sit in a dark room and aren't required to keep up with modern world. Managing people to execute a large project or change program still requires know how, common sense and the ability to talk to people. Tech has been evolving for the past 20 odd years I've been doing it. Only thing I've seen is the quality and logical thinking less commonplace, especially in software delivery.

Anyway, the ability to learn new skills is so easy now, there's no need to fall behind. I'm more curious if the old attitudes towards people in their 50s still exist (old and irrelevant) or whether some of the skills more prevalent in our generation will become a valued commodity.

[Don]

Bikerjon said:

I reckon the tech industry can be one of the worst places to be in as you get older. There's not many other professions I can think of where a particular skill can be so in demand one minute and then be almost worthless 5-10 years later. A fairly unsettling business unless you enjoy the constant treadmill of retraining every few years.

I call it "keeping up". The constant re-skilling.

It's what makes it fun. I wouldn't want to work in an industry where it all got too same-old, same-old....

[GetCarter]

wormus said:

Boomers are pretty much retired now (lucky them).

What? Most I know are still working. Just today in touch with one engineering in Abbey Road, one designing the new TVR, one starting a new company, and me half way through a project for Warner Bros. Who are these people that retire 'on the scrap heap' at 55?

..and before you shout 'money', most of the folk here that are still in work are over 50... it's the kids that have no work, and have to move away.

Edited by GetCarter on Thursday 5th January 19:01

[HD Adam]

Tim1989 said:

HD Adam said:

I'm 55.

Just had a nice payrise so I might go till 60 now

I have a share option in my company.

My mortgage is paid off.

Just taken a tax free lump from the PP and reinvested the rest.

I have 6 figure savings in the building society.

I have a Goatee

Don't think I'm on the scrap heap just yet.

Yours might be the last generation to get perks like this. Pensions reducing or absolute bare minimum already, and a retirement age that is getting increasingly higher. The days of people retiring at 55/60 are well and truly numbered.

Well I have paid a few quid into it and set it to pay out at 55 which seemed forever in my early 20's but came around pretty quick.

[anonymous-user]

Buster73 said:

That much wedge In the building society ?

Not doubting the amount , but must question the reasoning behind leaving it there gathering dust so to speak.

Madness imho.

At least spread it around a few, so if they go pop you'll get your money back..
Zilch inflation at the moment so not a bad place to leave it, not everyone wants to gamble on other money making schemes..