The
Baby Boom and the Effects on our Generation
Baby
booms have been happening since the dawn of time. The rate of births
decrease gradually, and then the birth rate rapidly increased in a
short time span. However this issue specifically, is more concerned
about the effects of the baby boom in Canada.
The baby
boom. What is it? A baby boom is the rapid increase of births in a
short time span. The most famous and well know baby boom was the boom
right after the second world war. This baby boom lasted between 1946
– 1966. In the 1930's during the Great Depression the birth rate
was decreasing because families did not have enough money to raise
and feed a big family. And then following the Great Depression men
and woman were being sent off to fight fight in the second world war.
Thus decreasing the birth rate even more. When the war was finally
over, everyone was celebrating. Creating new families, increasing the
number of children in the world. And increasing the birth rate. What
was 20.1% during the Great Depression and during the war, soon
increased to a rate of 28.5% once the war was over.
Around
twenty years later, these “boomers” became of age when they could
start entering the workforce. They created more, and more jobs. Had
families of their own and were living comfortable lifestyles. A
couple more years passed, and the “boomers” became eligible to
retire at the age of 65. The problem here is that there were and
still are thousands upon thousands of these boomers. And if they all
decide to retire at the same time it will lead to thousands of jobs
that will be needed to be replaced by young workers. However, there
are not enough people to fill these jobs. Don't forget that some of
these retired workers have worked in the force for over and up to 45
years! A lot of the young workers that will be replacing the boomers,
will be inexperienced and untrained. It will take lots of time and
effort to train these new workers to be up to par with the retirees.
Because of a lot of these conditions, most people eligible for
retirement choose or forced to stay in the workforce for a couple
more years.
During
the second world war, more and more woman were entering the
workforce. This is one of the main reasons for the baby boom. Because
less woman were stay at home moms. They started working full time and
earning a living. Obviously not as much as men at the time, but they
were becoming more independent. Resulting in the decrease of births.
But that all changed when all of the men came back home from the war.
Woman became part-time workers will children at home to take care of.
That generation of children were the baby boomers. Now, the woman of
the baby boom generation are still working full time. In 2007, 35% of
all woman working in Canada were over the age of 65.
The
senior population is still increasing today, is has been estimated
that by 2036, the senior population of men and woman is expected to
double, and is estimated to make up 23% to 35% of the total
population. With all of these senior citizens there will be a greater
need for the youth to take over their jobs, and to take care of all
of these people. With technology it is likely that these boomers will
last right up until they get to the age of 85-100.
The
effects of the boomers on our current generation will be tough, but
will be worth it. The effects will create thousands of jobs to
replace those of the boomers, it will stimulate the economy with all
of the elderly that need help. And most importantly, it will a chance
for the current generation to prove to the baby boomers that we can
help, to keep this country up and running.
So in
conclusion, if we continue to help the elderly that is the baby
boomers, they will help us. They will help us grow into the workers
that they once were.
The
Baby Boom
KROTKI,
K. J. (2012). The baby boom. In Retrieved from
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/baby-boom
- Long Term Effects, Appearance of the Baby Busters, or Generation X, and the War of Generations.
All
Ages - Show
Alderman,
V. (2012). All ages - show. In EBSCOhost. Retrieved from
http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?sid=4c75471c-33d2-4a77-af88-b580925d7367@sessionmgr12&vid=1&hid=14&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ==
- Future Generations, impacts and the new lifestyle.
Statistics
Canada
Statistics
Canada, (2013). Retrieved from website:
http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2011/as-sa/98-311-x/98-311-x2011003_2-eng.cfm
- Statistics on the growth rate,
Great comments and blog Gillian!
ReplyDeleteI didn't realize that the population of senior citizens was destined to double! That's actually kind of scary if you think about it, because that means we need to support them. Do you think we should be scared of this demographic prediction? Do you think it's accurate, or do you think that there's a possibility that it could change? How?
On that note, I was wondering if there could have been any more information on HOW to help the aging population, like you mentioned. What steps should our generation be taking to help combat this issue?
I'd love to know what you think!
Alma :)
I don't think we should be scared of this demographic prediction, we just need to be prepared. We know what the statistics are, so we need to use this to our advantage. be prepared and grow with the change. And i do believe that it is accurate of what will happen in the future.
DeleteOur current generation needs to take action. in the next few years there will be a great need for nurses and people to take care of the elderly, and if we know its coming, then we will be able to train new workers now, so that they are ready to help in the future.
thanks for your questions!
- Gillian
This is an interesting article Gillian.. Just one question, why is it neccessarily bad to have a baby boom, I understand that jobs was a problem but with more people wouldnt there be more jobs? I would have thought that it would have been an economic success for a baby boom? :P
ReplyDelete--Sloane
Its not bad, it just came as a shock to lots of people. birth rates were very low right before the boom. and suddenly there were thousands of babies! Mostly people didn't know how to react to all of the people. And in our lifetime, all of those boomer babies will grow old and it will be our responsibility to take care of them.
Delete