I recently struck a nerve

in a column I wrote called, "New Ideas Creating a

More Productive Work Environment." I began the

column with this paragraph:

"I recently heard a

statistic that in the year 2006; the U.S. will have a

shortage of 10 million workers. Wake up and smell the

coffee, here is my blunt opinion. If you don't provide a

productive and positive workplace, you may face going out

of business simply because talented workers today have

their choice of employers. You may get stuck with all the

unqualified and undesirable workers who can't find work

anywhere else."

A concerned reader named

Philip L. Brodowski, e-mailed me his side of the story.

"Personally, I believe

this statistic is correct - if anything, it may well be

understated. All anyone has to do is look at the

overwhelming number of job recruiter websites to see

thousands of positions that are available and this

doesn't include positions that are never advertised over

the Internet."

"Many of these

positions are open for months at a time - some never get

filled and are retracted, which brings me to the point of

this message: Notwithstanding the fact that thousands of

jobs across this country go begging, recruiters and

employers seem absolutely opposed to hiring qualified

individuals once they reach a certain age (mid-40s, early

50s?)"

"Many companies have

downsized leaving experienced, qualified and motivated

people without jobs. Personally, I have been in the job

market for about 4 months now. I have posted my resume on

numerous recruiter websites and every day check open

positions on about 15 regularly used websites. My resume

has been accessed approximately 200 times by

recruiters/employers and I have actively applied for 40

positions, some more than once."

"Having held senior

management positions, I am looking for the same level but

not necessarily in the same industry. In most cases, the

recruiter/employer does not even have the common courtesy

to acknowledge receipt of a cover letter and resume - I

have received many resumes and interviewed many people

over the course of my career and even though I was always

extremely busy, a response was always sent to the

applicant."

"Many of the positions

I have applied for closely mirror departments I have

managed very successfully; yet I have received canned

responses stating I do not have the qualifications to be

considered."

"The purpose of this

message is not to complain about my personal situation,

rather, it is to point out that American business is

deliberately overlooking a vast pool of people that have

many productive years ahead of them. As an example, I am

currently 52 and plan to work until age 62 or 65. That

leaves 10 to 13 years that can benefit a company."

"We all know

retirement age is being advanced to 70 years because life

spans are longer. If American business has a shortage of

people now and in the future, it should look inward and

accept responsibility for its deliberate exclusion of a

large, productive group of people who want to work."

It is apparent from this

person, as well as others who have contacted me, that we

are ignoring a major segment of the labor pool. Every

business I know is yelling for help, so I am not sure

what the problem is.

Are human resource people

afraid to hire older people because they feel like they

have to pay them more? Are older workers unable/unwilling

to take lower paying jobs?

I don't know about you, but

I know most age 40 plus workers have a better work ethic

than many younger people. So what is the problem? I would

like to hear what you think. Please feel free to e-mail

me your comments.

Gregory P. Smith shows

businesses how to build productive and profitable work

environments that attract, keep and motivate their

workforce. He speaks at conferences and is the President

of a management consulting firm called Chart Your Course

International located in Conyers, Georgia. Phone him at

(770)860-9464 or send an email at [email protected] . More information and articles are

available at www.ChartCourse.com .