Many Americans now work for a younger manager. Just over half (53 percent) of workers age 45 and older and 69 percent of employees age 55 and older have a supervisor who is younger than them, a recent CareerBuilder survey of 5,231 full time employees found.
But having a younger boss doesn’t seem to be making most older workers unhappy on the job. There were surprisingly few conflicts reported among the employees and their younger managers. Fairly small numbers of older workers said their younger bosses act like they know more than older workers when they don't (15 percent) or seem entitled (12 percent). Other complaints registered by a small proportion of those with younger bosses included they micromanage (11 percent), play favorites with younger workers (11 percent), or don’t offer enough direction (10 percent). “There are different communication styles from generation to generation,” says Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources at CareerBuilder. “Younger and older workers both need to recognize the value that each group brings to the table.”
[See The 20 Fastest-Growing Jobs for Aging Boomers.]
Older workers generally report the most satisfaction with their job. A Gallup poll released yesterday found that older workers are the most likely to enjoy their work. The telephone survey of 18,269 adults found that over three quarters (78 percent) of workers age 50 to 65 described their jobs as ideal, compared to about half (52 percent) of those age 18 to 29 and 70 percent of employees between ages 30 and 49. Experienced and educated workers in the survey had the most favorable impressions of their jobs, while people beginning their careers and those in fields that don’t require educational attainment such as clerical, service, retail, and manufacturing jobs were the least happy with their careers.
Check out these 7 ways to impress a younger boss.
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