Unfinished Work: The Struggle to Build an Aging American Workforce - Hardcover

Coleman, Joseph

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0199974454 ISBN 13: 9780199974450

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2015

Synopsis

The era of the aging worker is here. The forces driving the first decades of the 21st century -- globalization, technology, societal aging, and jarring economic instability -- have made later retirement a necessity for many, but those who choose to stay in the workforce are frustrated by a job market that fails to take advantage of their talents. As government's ability to finance retirement and health care declines, making space for older workers in the labor force has emerged as a chief challenge for the coming century.

Veteran international correspondent Joseph Coleman spent three years traveling to various places in Japan, France, Sweden, and across the United States to profile this aging global workforce. From the rice paddies of Japan to the heart of the American rust-belt, Coleman takes readers inside the lives of older workers. Clear-eyed portraits of individuals illuminate the aging of the world labor force and introduce readers to the factories, offices, and fields where older workers toil and the societies in which they live.

Unfinished Work explores a world in the midst of a revolution that will have far-reaching consequences for present and coming generations. Coleman maps out the problems we confront, shows us avenues forward, and illustrates the dangers of inaction. The engaging narrative reveals how accommodating our aging workforce can usher in humane policies that benefit workers across the spectrum of age. Improving conditions for older workers is critical for ensuring success and prosperity for society as a whole for years to come.

About this title

About the Author

Joseph Coleman has been a journalist for more than two decades, spending most of that time as a foreign correspondent for Associated Press, including 11 years in Japan. He's reported from more than 20 countries throughout Asia, Europe, and Latin America, covering stories ranging from the Colombian government's battle with the Medellin drug cartel to the Kobe earthquake, the Asian tsunami, and global warming. A graduate of Vassar College and Columbia University, Coleman is the Roy W. Howard Professor of Practice in the Indiana University Media School.

Review

"Unfinished Work is a jewel of insightful reporting that illuminates the human heart of the global economy. In a sweeping narrative that takes the reader from a mountain village in Japan to unemployment lines in the U.S., Joseph Coleman shows us the dignity and desperation of older workers, doing their best to survive and lead lives of purpose and meaning in a world that is rushing to leave them behind. It's a beautiful, urgent book that raises crucial questions about our future, both as countries and as individuals." --Thomas French, Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of Zoo Story: Life in the Garden of Captives

"The storytelling is engrossing, the character studies wonderfully rich, the information solid, and the writing superb. Coleman has produced an enjoyable, important, highly readable report from our future." --Charles Hanley, Special Correspondent at the Associated Press, winner of the 2000 Pulitzer Prize for investigative reporting, and author of The Bridge at No Gun Ri

"Joseph Coleman presents a creative and informative approach to later life work in Unfinished Work. Using international examples, there are engaging representations of challenging employment situations and outcomes. Major theories, policies, and authorities are worked into the text in interesting ways. Profiles of real workers, company practices, and programs are relevant and impactful." --Harvey L. Sterns, Ph.D. Director, Institute for Life-Span Development and Gerontology, The University of Akron

"A significant and timely contribution to the field. Joseph Coleman demonstrates great skill in guiding the reader through the complexities of the issues, from the need to re-fashion work for ageing societies that devalue age, to how older workers who are at the vanguard of modern employment practices may be treated as anachronisms, to the emergence of innovative public and employer policies against a background of a profound reconfiguration of economies which may limit their effectiveness. Informative and often inspiring, Unfinished Work is recommended as an invaluable resource for scholars, public policymakers and practitioners internationally." --Philip Taylor, Professor of Human Resource Management, Federation University Australia

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0199974454
• ISBN 13: 9780199974450
• Binding: Hardcover
• Language: English
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 258