Tyler Durden of ZeroHedge writes:

A good jobs report? Sure, if one is 55 and over. In December the American jobs gerontocracy continued its relentless course … some 2.7 million jobs in the 16-55 year old category have been lost. The “offset”: 4 million jobs for Americans between 55 and 69. For all those young people graduating from college (with $150,000 in student loans) who are unable to get a job, here is our advice: tell your parents, and grandparents, to retire already. Oh wait, they can’t because Bernanke destroyed their savings. Oops – better luck next time.

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I am a fan of Durden but the tone of this post surprises me.

First, if the idea is to share employment between generations, how will this tone work as an appeal to solidarity?

Second, this view implies that there is some kind of crowding out between generations, older workers displacing youth workers on the job market. Let me just say that there is no evidence for that view, on the contrary.

On the other hand, Investments in job market programs in US are far below the average for OECD member countries. Workforce development has been a priority far below banker’s wellbeing. I think you should look on that side for an answer…

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