Yahoo Finance Over-55s, not millennials, have been the main victims of the coronavirus jobs crisis
Older workers have borne the brunt of the coronavirus jobs crisis, with over-55s suffering larger cuts to their earnings than any other age group, the City watchdog has said.
The oldest workers have seen their pay fall by 23pc on average, while millennials and middle-aged workers have had to swallow smaller salary cuts of 19pc and 17pc respectively.
Despite reports that millennials have faced the worst job losses, Baby Boomers are just as likely as 20 to 39-year-olds to have been made redundant since the start of the pandemic, according to a report by the Financial Conduct Authority.
It found that 6pc of workers within these two age groups have lost their job. This is three times the percentage of middle-aged employees (40 to 54) who have faced redundancies. Both the older and younger workers were also the most likely to have been put on furlough.
Older people have also taken the largest hit to their hours and pay, with 5pc of over-55s working fewer hours or on reduced pay compared to 3pc of millennial and middle-aged workers.
The difference is starker among those on zero-hour contracts, where one in 10 older workers has taken a pay cut, compared with one in 20 workers under the age of 40.
The report said older workers who had not yet retired had been impacted disproportionately and some were "now confronting real financial hardship and challenges ahead”. It added that older people who had been made redundant may find it harder to find opportunities to retrain.
Those of retirement age have been particularly hard hit by the pandemic, according to separate research by Rest Less, a jobs site for older people. Its analysis of data from the Office for National Statistics found that over-65s had seen the biggest drop in number of hours worked since the outbreak.
Stuart Lewis, the firm’s founder, said: “This is likely due to the number of older people who have had to shield or self-isolate.”
The number of weekly hours worked by the typical person aged 65-plus fell from 20 between January and March to 16 between March and May.
People who are unable to come into work because they are self-isolating will usually face a huge drop in earnings, as a large number of employers are only offering these workers statutory sick pay. Paid at just £95.85 a week, this is generally much lower than people’s wages.
Falling income has forced many older people to turn to the benefits system for help. The number of over-50s claiming Universal Credit more than doubled between March and May.
Mr Lewis said: “Sadly, this is only the tip of the iceberg as many of those unemployed in their 50s will not be eligible to claim Universal Credit.” This could be because they have more than £16,000 in savings or, in case of those over 65, because they are drawing a state pension.
“With birth rates having declined for decades, the over-50s have been the main driving force behind the success story of employment growth in Britain in the years leading up to the pandemic. Crucially, they will be just as essential to any recovery of the economy on the other side,” Mr Lewis said.
