A former U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania is asking business leaders and lawmakers to take steps to provide more opportunities for older Iowans to volunteer or stay in the workforce. Harris Wofford delivered the keynote address this morning at the Iowa Smart Economic Development Conference in Des Moines.
"If we’re looking at the economic development of communities, the people power of this generation that’s larger and healthier than any generation in our history – the boomer generation…we’ve got to learn how to see it not as a burden on society, but as a great opportunity and resource," Wofford told Radio Iowa.
He says Iowa could follow the lead of California. That state has a program in place designed to fill it’s shortage of math and science teachers with retirees. Wofford says corporations in California sponsor teacher training programs for recent retirees that have expertise in math and science.
Wofford is a spokesperson for Experience Wave , an organization that’s working to advance federal and state policies that make it easier for older Americans to keep working past the traditional retirement age.