Typical American Career path - esp after 50

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had several friends laid off this year; we are all around 50 and have been in the same company for 10-20 years. They were still low level like managers or IC — not leadership or executive path.

However I don’t know many people in corporate America — my whole family worked for the county and here in DC we work for the govt and know either gov workers, contractors, or BigLaw partners.

What is the career path and out look for working to retirement as a F500 IC in like Chicago or Dallas? Does most of America live in fear of layoffs as they near 50??

OP - I'm sorry this happened to you. Unfortunately your experience isn't uncommon and, yes, many of us do live in fear of layoffs.

That said, I think the mistake you may have made was staying in one place for too long. 10-20 years is a very long time to be at the same company, and while it lets you create some serious institutional knowledge, that knowledge isn't valuable once you leave that company. Diversity of experience both in role and environment is usually a better builder of capabilities and value. The next employer often sees it the same way. They don't want a job hopper, but they also don't want somebody who is stagnant.

There's a phrase "You drown not by falling into a river, but by staying submerged in it". I think this applies here.

With that in mind, your job right now is to look busy and productive for your next employer. That's obviously not in a full time job, but it can be through volunteering, education, 1099 work, etc. Whatever it take to avoid looking like you're stuck.

That’s all well and good, and I actually have been looking for a new job myself for over a decade, but I never got an offer that was compelling enough to be worth switching. Not better pay and benefits, usually a less stable company. Switching jobs frequently is very hard when you are working Parents, there are a lot of costs to starting a new job in time and flexibility, and you have to really be on your game when you first start out because if you fall through at all because like a kid gets sick, they are much more likely to can you compared to a place where you have proven your worth over time.

I job hopped a bunch before kids, like every two years. It was like clockwork, and it was a great way to boost salary and skills, but then once the kids were in the mix, it was much harder to move, logistically and physically, and I knew a new job could’ve could tell longer hours or less flexibility. It’s not like we made money where we could hire a full-time nanny who drove our kids around we were just gonna get a daycare.

I think that is part of my relatives and friends who got laid off problem, they were also working parents and had stayed in the same job for stability and flexibility in their lives and knew they could do their job well without long hours. But then at 50 or so the company just let them go just when they head college bills.

You act as if you're the only one with kids or a life outside of work. Other people find a way to move around.

Either way, I'm sorry this happened to you. Good luck.

My impression is that most people move around to new jobs by having grandparents who live near them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Accounting and Audit is a great career. Back in the days of SOX I was Big 4 and visited 23 states and three countries doing Audit work.

In my 8 years I worked at maybe 100 clients and while on trips I always go to a ball game, got to a club, find best restaurant in town, go sightseeing. The work itself was not exciting but the people aspect was amazing.

My Daughters friend started at PwC out of school in 2022 with a 100K base and a 10K sign-on. If she stays by 34 if Partner could be making $700k.

And she started with 4 year degree. Plans on part time taking courses to hit 5 year rule to sit for CPA and make PwC pay.

Good luck making it to partner. A vast majority never get that far. The amount of hours the Big 4 expect of employees is unsustainable for most.

Partner at 34 doesn't happen, neither does 750K for junior/rookie partner. Spouse (49) is a partner at a place you all know. 920k last year.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was just reflecting on this the other day. I work at a tech company, I'm 33, and I am "old". Most of the folks I interact with on a daily working basis are 25-30.

The only folks older than me are in 3 brackets:
1- 38-45 - director+ folks, probably going to be exec leadership someday (though probably not at our huge company)
2- 45+ - senior leadership; VP+
3 - 38-55 - mid-level managers, IC folks.

The ones who get pushed out and the focus of this discussion are bucket 3. I'm always thinking about how do I future proof myself to be in groups 1&2.

The other thing to mention is that almost everyone is a male. I am a female who wants to have kids soon and I have a lot of fear and anxiety that I will fall into group 3 once I have kids. All of my male colleagues in groups 1&2 with kids barely act like they have children. I see no discernable change. Their wives are either SAHMs or in bucket 3.

I am a SAHM trying to get a level 3 job. Not having luck.

Fellow 3 here just got scared 🤔

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was just reflecting on this the other day. I work at a tech company, I'm 33, and I am "old". Most of the folks I interact with on a daily working basis are 25-30.

The only folks older than me are in 3 brackets:
1- 38-45 - director+ folks, probably going to be exec leadership someday (though probably not at our huge company)
2- 45+ - senior leadership; VP+
3 - 38-55 - mid-level managers, IC folks.

The ones who get pushed out and the focus of this discussion are bucket 3. I'm always thinking about how do I future proof myself to be in groups 1&2.

The other thing to mention is that almost everyone is a male. I am a female who wants to have kids soon and I have a lot of fear and anxiety that I will fall into group 3 once I have kids. All of my male colleagues in groups 1&2 with kids barely act like they have children. I see no discernable change. Their wives are either SAHMs or in bucket 3.

So no IC over 55? They are all gone by that age.

But you are at a tech company, don’t you make like $500k, so maybe everyone just retires by 55 with a few $Ms in the bank?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was just reflecting on this the other day. I work at a tech company, I'm 33, and I am "old". Most of the folks I interact with on a daily working basis are 25-30.

The only folks older than me are in 3 brackets:
1- 38-45 - director+ folks, probably going to be exec leadership someday (though probably not at our huge company)
2- 45+ - senior leadership; VP+
3 - 38-55 - mid-level managers, IC folks.

The ones who get pushed out and the focus of this discussion are bucket 3. I'm always thinking about how do I future proof myself to be in groups 1&2.

The other thing to mention is that almost everyone is a male. I am a female who wants to have kids soon and I have a lot of fear and anxiety that I will fall into group 3 once I have kids. All of my male colleagues in groups 1&2 with kids barely act like they have children. I see no discernable change. Their wives are either SAHMs or in bucket 3.

So no IC over 55? They are all gone by that age.

But you are at a tech company, don’t you make like $500k, so maybe everyone just retires by 55 with a few $Ms in the bank?

PP here- I am sure there are some over 55 but no one comes to mind. I am curious- yes, where are they? What type of company are they at? I highly doubt they are all retired. Despite all the headlines, mid level tech employees don’t make $500+.

[Anonymous]

I was laid of from consulting at 53. Thankfully, I had a good severance package. I was able to find a job six months later, but it is a significantly reduced salary.

Thankfully, DH doesn’t have the same issue (medicine) and we had a lot saved for college already.

I wish I knew this was an issue in my 30s/40s. We saved a lot and lived well within our means, but I think I would have saved even more and thought to retire at 55.

I was able to move into a different type of role and it is still a challenge, but I feel lucky to have found another job as many of my colleagues haven’t had the same luck.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was laid of from consulting at 53. Thankfully, I had a good severance package. I was able to find a job six months later, but it is a significantly reduced salary.

Thankfully, DH doesn’t have the same issue (medicine) and we had a lot saved for college already.

I wish I knew this was an issue in my 30s/40s. We saved a lot and lived well within our means, but I think I would have saved even more and thought to retire at 55.

I was able to move into a different type of role and it is still a challenge, but I feel lucky to have found another job as many of my colleagues haven’t had the same luck.

Was this like you dropped from $400k to $300k or more like $250k to $100k?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started to worry about ageism at 40 and saved 50% or more of my salary over many years.

40 isn’t that terrible. I am not actively looking but hiring managers and recruiters are still pinging me regularly. Don’t go to an industry with a lot of young people like tech or gaming/leisure.

No one was talking about ageism when I started working at 25, and my family was all govt workers so it was a foreign concept to me.

How old are you?

I am 51, started working in 1995. The writing on the wall was already there in huge letters. I posted a link in DCUM a few months ago - there was an article in NYTimes around 2001 about middle aged tech executives who never found another comparable job after a layoff. It was called “Commute to nowhere”.

I just read this. What a great read. Things haven't changed much. There was a big wave of older employees getting laid off in the GFC. I doubt many recovered from that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had several friends laid off this year; we are all around 50 and have been in the same company for 10-20 years. They were still low level like managers or IC — not leadership or executive path.

However I don’t know many people in corporate America — my whole family worked for the county and here in DC we work for the govt and know either gov workers, contractors, or BigLaw partners.

What is the career path and out look for working to retirement as a F500 IC in like Chicago or Dallas? Does most of America live in fear of layoffs as they near 50??

OP - I'm sorry this happened to you. Unfortunately your experience isn't uncommon and, yes, many of us do live in fear of layoffs.

That said, I think the mistake you may have made was staying in one place for too long. 10-20 years is a very long time to be at the same company, and while it lets you create some serious institutional knowledge, that knowledge isn't valuable once you leave that company. Diversity of experience both in role and environment is usually a better builder of capabilities and value. The next employer often sees it the same way. They don't want a job hopper, but they also don't want somebody who is stagnant.

There's a phrase "You drown not by falling into a river, but by staying submerged in it". I think this applies here.

With that in mind, your job right now is to look busy and productive for your next employer. That's obviously not in a full time job, but it can be through volunteering, education, 1099 work, etc. Whatever it take to avoid looking like you're stuck.

That’s all well and good, and I actually have been looking for a new job myself for over a decade, but I never got an offer that was compelling enough to be worth switching. Not better pay and benefits, usually a less stable company. Switching jobs frequently is very hard when you are working Parents, there are a lot of costs to starting a new job in time and flexibility, and you have to really be on your game when you first start out because if you fall through at all because like a kid gets sick, they are much more likely to can you compared to a place where you have proven your worth over time.

I job hopped a bunch before kids, like every two years. It was like clockwork, and it was a great way to boost salary and skills, but then once the kids were in the mix, it was much harder to move, logistically and physically, and I knew a new job could’ve could tell longer hours or less flexibility. It’s not like we made money where we could hire a full-time nanny who drove our kids around we were just gonna get a daycare.

I think that is part of my relatives and friends who got laid off problem, they were also working parents and had stayed in the same job for stability and flexibility in their lives and knew they could do their job well without long hours. But then at 50 or so the company just let them go just when they head college bills.

You act as if you're the only one with kids or a life outside of work. Other people find a way to move around.

Either way, I'm sorry this happened to you. Good luck.

My impression is that most people move around to new jobs by having grandparents who live near them.

Interesting. I've never had grandparent help, but I've changed jobs several times over the course of two decades. But I have stayed in one location.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I’ve had several friends laid off this year; we are all around 50 and have been in the same company for 10-20 years. They were still low level like managers or IC — not leadership or executive path.

However I don’t know many people in corporate America — my whole family worked for the county and here in DC we work for the govt and know either gov workers, contractors, or BigLaw partners.

What is the career path and out look for working to retirement as a F500 IC in like Chicago or Dallas? Does most of America live in fear of layoffs as they near 50??

OP - I'm sorry this happened to you. Unfortunately your experience isn't uncommon and, yes, many of us do live in fear of layoffs.

That said, I think the mistake you may have made was staying in one place for too long. 10-20 years is a very long time to be at the same company, and while it lets you create some serious institutional knowledge, that knowledge isn't valuable once you leave that company. Diversity of experience both in role and environment is usually a better builder of capabilities and value. The next employer often sees it the same way. They don't want a job hopper, but they also don't want somebody who is stagnant.

There's a phrase "You drown not by falling into a river, but by staying submerged in it". I think this applies here.

With that in mind, your job right now is to look busy and productive for your next employer. That's obviously not in a full time job, but it can be through volunteering, education, 1099 work, etc. Whatever it take to avoid looking like you're stuck.

That’s all well and good, and I actually have been looking for a new job myself for over a decade, but I never got an offer that was compelling enough to be worth switching. Not better pay and benefits, usually a less stable company. Switching jobs frequently is very hard when you are working Parents, there are a lot of costs to starting a new job in time and flexibility, and you have to really be on your game when you first start out because if you fall through at all because like a kid gets sick, they are much more likely to can you compared to a place where you have proven your worth over time.

I job hopped a bunch before kids, like every two years. It was like clockwork, and it was a great way to boost salary and skills, but then once the kids were in the mix, it was much harder to move, logistically and physically, and I knew a new job could’ve could tell longer hours or less flexibility. It’s not like we made money where we could hire a full-time nanny who drove our kids around we were just gonna get a daycare.

I think that is part of my relatives and friends who got laid off problem, they were also working parents and had stayed in the same job for stability and flexibility in their lives and knew they could do their job well without long hours. But then at 50 or so the company just let them go just when they head college bills.

You act as if you're the only one with kids or a life outside of work. Other people find a way to move around.

Either way, I'm sorry this happened to you. Good luck.

My impression is that most people move around to new jobs by having grandparents who live near them.

Interesting. I've never had grandparent help, but I've changed jobs several times over the course of two decades. But I have stayed in one location.

Who picked up your kids, mad dinner, got them to soccer practice? Did your DH have the same job and have lots of flexibility?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started to worry about ageism at 40 and saved 50% or more of my salary over many years.

40 isn’t that terrible. I am not actively looking but hiring managers and recruiters are still pinging me regularly. Don’t go to an industry with a lot of young people like tech or gaming/leisure.

No one was talking about ageism when I started working at 25, and my family was all govt workers so it was a foreign concept to me.

How old are you?

I am 51, started working in 1995. The writing on the wall was already there in huge letters. I posted a link in DCUM a few months ago - there was an article in NYTimes around 2001 about middle aged tech executives who never found another comparable job after a layoff. It was called “Commute to nowhere”.

I just read this. What a great read. Things haven't changed much. There was a big wave of older employees getting laid off in the GFC. I doubt many recovered from that.

Great read, but so depressing. I feel for those people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I started to worry about ageism at 40 and saved 50% or more of my salary over many years.

40 isn’t that terrible. I am not actively looking but hiring managers and recruiters are still pinging me regularly. Don’t go to an industry with a lot of young people like tech or gaming/leisure.

No one was talking about ageism when I started working at 25, and my family was all govt workers so it was a foreign concept to me.

How old are you?

I am 51, started working in 1995. The writing on the wall was already there in huge letters. I posted a link in DCUM a few months ago - there was an article in NYTimes around 2001 about middle aged tech executives who never found another comparable job after a layoff. It was called “Commute to nowhere”.

I just read this. What a great read. Things haven't changed much. There was a big wave of older employees getting laid off in the GFC. I doubt many recovered from that.

This article isn’t about ageism. It’s about the weak labor market after dot.bomb and Enron scandal — one of them and Enron as a client.

I read this article when it came out, but my takeaway was tech was going to be dead for a while — which in fact was wrong, and lead me to move into a different field making less money. It does not mention ageism anywhere; in guess it shows if you are older when a financial crisis happens it can be hard, but we have had two in the last 20 years, but ageism hits people with layoffs even in good times — which is not conveyed here.

[Anonymous]

https://www.dcurbanmom.com/jforum/posts/list/1210577.page

I made this thread earlier this summer

Many people disagreed but there is a growing contingent of people who are waking up

The next slow down is gonna throw millions of people above 40 out of the workforce permanently

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was laid of from consulting at 53. Thankfully, I had a good severance package. I was able to find a job six months later, but it is a significantly reduced salary.

Thankfully, DH doesn’t have the same issue (medicine) and we had a lot saved for college already.

I wish I knew this was an issue in my 30s/40s. We saved a lot and lived well within our means, but I think I would have saved even more and thought to retire at 55.

I was able to move into a different type of role and it is still a challenge, but I feel lucky to have found another job as many of my colleagues haven’t had the same luck.

I believe we need to spread the word that one has to save money early and often before ageism hits. I worried about ageism starting in my 30s and made saving and increasing my salary a priority. I didn't always keep jobs for eons because I was often thinking, "how can I earn another $10K a year"?

After being laid off in a recession, I saw how little companies -- especially companies bought by venture capitalists -- cared about people. We were just "human capital" after all.

[Anonymous]

When I was laid off at 40 I was already considered an "older worker" - I don't remember the exact process but there was extra paperwork related to age discrimination. I had a new job before my severance ran out, but that shook me and I saved like mad for the next 5 years, then launched a side business while still working full-time that eventually became my sole job at 49. I'm now 55 and financially independent, so starting to wind down my business (I still enjoy it but I am TIRED).

I did an ok job of saving/investing before the layoff, but that was the wakeup call I needed to go into overdrive and maneuver myself out of a 9-5. Huge blessing in disguise.