Here is an interesting story from Business Week - Employers Avoid Axing Oldies but Goodies:
Last fall, drugstore chain CVS Caremark (CVS) cut some 800 jobs in Northern California after acquiring Longs Drugs, a Walnut Creek (Calif.) pharmacy rival. Despite those cuts, the company continues to recruit baby boomers and other older workers to staff stores across the country. "We need their expertise," says Stephen Wing, director of workforce initiatives at CVS Caremark in Woonsocket, R.I. "When you're in your 50s and 60s, you're in your prime."
Companies nationwide are laying off workers by the tens of thousands. But many are trying to spare the post-55 set from the ax, a reversal of the top-down trends in past waves of layoffs. They're being driven by legal concerns--since boomers are in a protected age group--and by a need to keep experienced hands in place to keep the companies running and positioned for an upturn.
Have companies learned the "Circuit City" lesson? Let's hope so.
Hi Ken,
I do appreciate CVS for for sparing the oldies when they were laying off people in large numbers. As Stephen Wing their experience would come in hand. I personally feel that people in the 50 and 60s would find it difficult to find a job in this market at present that may also be a reason for the company to keep them. This has help the company retain its image even though it has lay's off people.
Regards,
Michael Hayes
http://momentumstaffing.wordpress.com/