On Dec. 2, Gary Rasor, an 83-year-old worker at Home Depot, died from injuries he sustained after being violently pushed to the ground while on the job. Rasor had worked at the store as an “associate” for nine years, and celebrated his 83rd birthday in the hospital just days after the attack.
Rasor’s fatal assault at work may seem an extreme case, but it illustrates the dangers faced by America’s rapidly growing elder workforce. These older workers are at far greater risk of death on the job than workers under age 55. While fatal occupational injuries among workers of all ages decreased by 17% from 1992 to 2017, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, “older workers incurred 56% more fatal work injuries in 2017 than in 1992. This trend is especially pronounced for workers in the oldest group, those aged 65 and over.”
Dying from your job in old age is the most severe of many hazards and inequities endured by the elder workforce. Startlingly, half of all new workers projected to be added to the economy by 2031 will be over the age of 65. In a ray of hope, a bill introduced in December by Reps. Don Beyer, D-Va., and Marie Newman, D-Ill., would create an Older Workers Bureau to give elderly workers like Rasor a strong federal ally in securing better jobs and pay, safer and more age-friendly working conditions, and more opportunities to choose between work and retirement.
